Konecranes will permanently lay off 51 employees in Finland in the wake of its statutory negotiations with workers.

The crane manufacturer began the negotiations in August (Forkliftaction.com News #630) as part of the measures mentioned in the Konecranes stock exchange release dated July 24, 2013, which announced that the company would reduce its annual cost base by EUR30 million (USD40 million) by the end of 2014.

A Konecranes spokesman tells Forkliftaction.com News the job losses will come from equipment and service operations in Finland.

The 51 positions axed were decided in the statutory negotiations with employee representatives, the spokesman explains. "The final selection of employees is determined by the managers involved in these negotiations."

Asked how the staff reductions will impact on operations, he says that "some work needs to be reallocated to reach the expected operational efficiency".

The permanent layoffs will be completed by the end of the first quarter of 2014, and there will also be a reduction in temporary staff and new hirings, while some early retirements are also planned.

"The total impact will be to reduce the number of personnel by approximately 80 persons," according to a company statement.

Additionally, Konecranes Service Oy and Konecranes Finland Oy have agreed on temporary layoffs to be carried out where needed. In Konecranes Service Oy, they will be carried out by the end of June 2014 and in Konecranes Finland by the end of August 2014.

Konecranes currently employs some 12,000 people in 48 countries and around 2,000 staff in Finland.

As previously reported, the aim of the measures is to "adjust the company's cost structure and capacity and bring it in line with the current, weakened market situation and to secure Konecranes' future competitiveness".

The actions being considered are globally expected to affect a maximum of 600 people through redundancies, temporary layoffs and early retirement, according to the company.