Siemens to cut 15,000 jobs

In a bid to reduce costs and become more competitive, industrial giant Siemens AG plans to cut 15,000 jobs by October 2014 , company officials have revealed. No job cuts have been made and the company plans to cut headcount via voluntary departures.

The company has already negotiated severance packages for the affected workers with union leaders, German business daily the Handelsblatt. The layoffs at one plant may not occur because many workers will be offered positions in other areas, Siemens spokesmen said. About 5,000 job cuts will take place in Germany, targeting the engineering giant's industrial, energy and infrastructure units.

Siemens expects to reduce costs by more than 6 billion euros (over $8 billion), press reports said. The conglomerate, which was founded in 1847, had not finalised its job-cut plans, but analysts expected at least 10,000 positions to be eliminated. Joe Kaeser took over as president and CEO of Siemens Aug 1, replacing Peter Löscher.