DUBLIN (Reuters) - Novartis said on Thursday that it would cut up to 400 jobs in Ireland, or about a quarter of its workforce there, as part of a previously announced restructuring programme that will cut 8,000 jobs globally.
The Swiss pharmaceutical giant said in June that the plan targeting savings of at least $1 billion by 2024 would reduce its total workforce of over 100,000 people by around 7.4%.
The changes could potentially impact around 400 staff at its global service centre in Dublin, Novartis said in a statement. It currently employs 1,500 people in Ireland, including 1,000 in the Dublin operation that it said will continue to play a critical role.
"Ireland is an important location for Novartis due to its unique eco-system of highly educated, skilled and adaptable workforce which is critical in the knowledge-intensive, high-science, pharma sector," Novartis AG said.
All of the world's top 10 pharmaceutical companies have operations in Ireland, making the country the fifth largest exporter of pharmaceuticals globally, according to state investment agency IDA Ireland.
Jobs growth among multinationals in Ireland soared to record levels in the first half of 2022, helping push the unemployment rate to a near 21-year low of 4.3% and keeping the economy growing strongly despite inflationary pressures.