Coca-Cola to cut as many as 1,800 jobs worldwide

Coca-Cola will cut as many as 1,800 jobs, or about 1 per cent of its global workforce, as the world’s largest beverage company reduces costs amid a sales slump.

The first employees to be let go were notified yesterday and more jobs will be eliminated in the coming months, the company said in an e-mailed statement.

The cuts will stretch across Coca-Cola’s corporate headquarters and North American operations, both based in Atlanta, as well as its international units.

“We are redesigning our operating model to streamline and simplify our structure and accelerate the growth of our global business,” Coca-Cola said.

“We will continuously look for ways to streamline our business and drive growth as our business and our operating model evolve.”

Chief executive officer Muhtar Kent said on October 21 that he would carve out $3 billion in annual costs, which would include job cuts, as the company struggles with sluggish international growth and mounting concerns over obesity and artificial sweeteners.

The company said it has identified 1,600 to 1,800 positions to eliminate.

Jobs in Coca-Cola’s US and global beverage bottling operations are not affected. More cuts may be considered in the bottling operations as the company continues to look for cost savings, it said in a separate e-mail.

Coca-Cola employed 130,600 people globally as of December 31 2013, which included about 13,000 in the affected corporate operations. Coca-Cola rose 1.2 per cent to $43.51 at the close in New York.

The stock advanced 2.2 per cent last year, trailing a 14 per cent gain for rival PepsiCo.

Bloomberg