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Sanyo Announces Change in Employee Reduction Plan

September 28, 2005 by Jeff Shepard

Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd. (Japan), a developer of rechargeable batteries, announced that it will cut 10,000 of its planned 15,000 employee reduction by January 2006. The full staff cuts were originally planned to be implemented by 2007, but have been pushed into the first phase of the company's three-part revitalization plan. The full plan’s resulting value to the company is expected about $1.5 billion (¥170 billion) in the next three years.

Reasoning the revision, Sanyo stated, "Consolidated financial results have been affected by price decreases and intense competition of digital consumer products, causing sluggish sales of Sanyo’s consumer and component segments. Moreover, our semiconductor business was adversely affected by the earthquake , therefore, Sanyo forecasts a lower operating income for the mid-term and full year, compared to the previous forecast."

Additional activities in the first phase of Sanyo’s revitalization plan include closing its Hojo factory (Hyogo prefecture), the closure of its semiconductors’ post-process Omama factory of Kanto Sanyo Semiconductors Co. Ltd. (Gunma prefecture), and a move by the company toward the sale or securitization of buildings, including the headquarters building and 68 sales offices in Japan.