Nokia Cuts 1,200 French Jobs in Former Alcatel-Lucent Business

(Bloomberg) -- Nokia Oyj plans to cut 1,233 jobs in France, as it seeks to streamline operations that were part of Alcatel-Lucent, underscoring the struggles the network-equipment vendor has encountered in integrating the 2016 purchase.

The employee count will be reduced across R&D and central functions at Nokia’s Paris-Saclay and Lannion sites, the Finnish company said in an e-mailed statement. Nokia will hold talks with French Works councils and the final outcome will be known only after the process has been concluded. The company said the cuts are part of a plan to reduce costs that was announced in October 2018.

Nokia is evaluating its global R&D operations globally, and this has already led to significant adjustments, a spokesperson said. The implementation of this project has affected some countries already, and is now affecting France, the spokesperson added.

Nokia’s merger with Alcatel-Lucent gave the company a wider range of products in its portfolio, but also came with the cumbersome task of integrating the two businesses. Analysts have highlighted that work as one reason for recent hiccups in Nokia’s efforts to become the leading provider of fifth-generation cellular radio technology.

Chief Executive Officer Rajeev Suri, who will step down later this year, has also indicated that the merger work has been an extra burden for Nokia ahead of the launch of 5G network products.

Nokia France’s three affiliate companies -- Radio Frequency Systems, Nokia Bell Labs France, and Alcatel Submarine Networks -- will not be affected by the cuts announced Monday, according to the statement.

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