Smith & Nephew CEO says Memphis media reports on layoffs cause were ‘just wrong’ (Memphis Business Journal)
While confirming the company laid off 63 people in Memphis, Smith & Nephew PLC CEO Olivier Bohuon also directly contradicted a statement the company issued last week when it originally made the layoff announcement.
During the company’s full-year 2012 earnings conference call Thursday, Bohuon said the company laid off 63 employees in Memphis “about 20 in Boston, and something like 12 in Europe, I think.”
On Jan. 31, Smith & Nephew announced the layoffs and released the following statement:
“The nearly $30 billion tax on medical devices that took effect Jan. 1, 2013 has impacted a number of companies across the U.S. Smith & Nephew is not immune from this added expense burden. Unfortunately, and in order to absorb this cost burden into our business, this has meant less than 100 positions have been made redundant across various departmental functions in our Tennessee and Massachusetts sites. The company is providing the affected employees with a comprehensive severance package and outplacement support.”
Bohuon called the layoffs a follow up of the company’s value ...
