The restructuring events database contains factsheets with data on large-scale restructuring events reported in the principal national media and company websites in each EU Member State. This database was created in 2002.
Manufacturing Manufacture For Transport Equipment Manufacture Of Other Transport Equipment 30.20 - Manufacture of railway locomotives and rolling stock
75 jobs Number of planned job losses
Announcement Date
4 June 2016
Employment effect (start)
Foreseen end date
Description
The Belgian railroad production division of the Canadian Bombardier holding has announced the dismissal of 75 of its approximately 693 employees. The company is being forced to reduce the amount of production workers active in the facility in Brugge to cut back on labour costs. The measures are already in place and will continue in months to come, however, a precise date on when all of the layoffs will be completed has not been specified. The company has tried to minimise the number of direct dismissals and a number of employees have agreed to leave voluntarily. Various efforts have also been undertaken by the company to facilitate the dismissed workers in their search for a new job, for example, the company has organised job fairs. Employee representatives stated that they regret the layoffs but are pleased with the efforts undertaken by the employer to reduce the number of direct dismissals. On top off this, they have received a written statement that no other employees will lose their jobs for the next 5 years. Considering a predicted unemployment of approximately 30-35% for the company in coming years, this promise is of significant value to both the employees and their representatives. In February of this year Bombardier announced cutbacks in its divisions worldwide, and a total of 7000 job losses are estimated. However, upon this announcement, saving measures in the Belgian division seemed rather limited with no expected loss of jobs.
Sources
4 June 2016: Het Nieuwsblad
4 June 2016: De Standaard
Citation
Eurofound (2016), Bombardier Transportation Belgium, Internal restructuring in Belgium, factsheet number 87656, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/87656.
Digitisation and automation technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), can affect working conditions in a variety of ways and their use in the workplace raises a host of new ethical concerns.
The retail banking sector is fertile ground for studying the impacts of digitalisation on work and employment. Financial services are increasingly provided online, without the intermediary of customer-facing institutions.
European labour markets have recovered strongly from COVID-19. By the end of 2021, little more than 18 months after the start of the pandemic, employment rates in the EU were almost at pre-crisis levels.
