Nokia to leave 2,300 Germans unemployed

Cellphone giant Nokia will soon close one of its German factories, putting some 2,300 people out of work, writes Agence France-Presse. The Finnish company claims that due to "market changes and increasing requirements for cost-effectiveness," it can no longer afford to keep its presence in Germany, which is represented by a facility in Bochum. Along with the factory, the Bochum site also plays host to buildings such as research and development labs, which Nokia hopes to sell to one or more parties. The company says it is already in negotiations with India's Sasken Technologies, in this regard.

Nokia has also been negotiating with factory labor unions on the terms of the closure, which it hopes to begin as soon as possible. Efforts were reportedly made before today's announcement to keep Bochum going; neither improvement projects nor collaborations with employees, however, are said to have improved the plant's profitability.

Nokia controls some 40 percent of the total cellphone market, and 63 percent of the smartphone market. Despite this, it has increasingly moved production efforts to cheaper Third World locations, including China, Mexico, India and Brazil. First World sites include plants in Britain, Finland, Hungary and South Korea.

Filed under: industry, gadgets
Other story tags: Nokia, Germany