Top-Pharma companies job cuts in last year..??

Hello guys here I am going to mention about recent job layoffs in giant drug makers during last year. Hope you enjoy the reading....Thank you

Due to so many factors like economic recession and lack of innovative drug pipeline in the pharmacuetical market many of giant companies laid off hendreds of employess. In this critical time employess always on the edge of job secutiry and HR people are keep busy in drafting layoff letters....:(

1. Merck ($MRK)
2. Pfizer
3. Novartis
4. Abbott Laboratories
5. Astrazenica
6. Teva Pharmaceuticals
7. Sanofi
8. Johson&Johson
9. Eisai
10. Bayer

• Merck 1.5 billions on research costs thousands of job layoffs. Most of the jobs losses happened in administrative and operations department. It is going to reduce 30% of it's workforce after the merging with Schering-Plough in 2009

• Regarding Pfizer, it majorly cuts it budget in R&D operations in 2011. It closed R&D facility at Sandwich, UK which caused loss of about 2,400 jobs according to The Guardian Uk report. At this site the drug ''Viagra'' developed at it acted as main head quarter for R&D in ''Europe''

• Major impetus for this Pfizer job cuts is  the company lost it's patent exclusivity on mega blockbuster cholesterol pill ''Lipitor'' and it's $68 billion acquisition of Wyeth in 2009.    

• Novartis CEO Joe Jimenez said plummeting European drug market is one of the cause for shutting down their neuroscience drug R&D facility at Basil and manufacturing plant in Nyon, Switzerland and one in Italy. This affected about 2,500 job losses in Novartis and this drug maker looking forward to shift it activities towards Asia. It began a R&D complex near to MIT, USA with the investment of $600 millions according to report in ''The Boston Globe''.   

• Abbott laboratories started 2011 with the announcement of 1,900 job losses that is 6% of its employees. It said drug regulatory requirements forcing it layoffs as it New Drug Application to Briakinumab was rejected by FDA.    

• Astrazenica made layoffs hundreds of jobs in it's sales and marketing department in London based branch. This was majorly due to it's patent expiration on major anti-psychotic drug ''Seroquel'', the affect was 1500 job cuts.

The bottom line is, this layoffs due to several factors like:

1. Reducing costs, patent cliff
2. R&D cuts, European drug pricing.
3. Shifting work to Asia, European drug market decline
4. Pipeline woes 
5. Plant slow-down, merger-related cost savings

This is the reason for major pharma companies layoff in 2011. Thanks for your reading feel free to share your thoughts by commenting below the post..

With regards,

Santhosh Rao Mennani

Posted in: My reviews