The flat grass manufacturing company group AGC announced plans to cut 190 jobs across Europe, the company announced on Monday, with 103 workers in Belgium to lose their jobs due to the cuts.
According to trade unions, AGC justified the plan by citing cost-cutting measures due to a significant drop in architectural glass production in recent months, coupled with pessimistic forecasts for the next two years. The company stated that a decision is a part of a competitiveness strategy.
The job cuts will target the architectural division of the company’s operations, particularly support roles.
In Belgium, the redundancies are expected to primarily affect two sites: the headquarters in Louvain-la-Neuve and the research centre in Gosselies, Charleroi. Over the next two years, 49 jobs could be eliminated at the headquarters and 30 at the research centre, with another 24 cuts across various other sites.
Based on these figures, the company reportedly considers the measure a reorganisation plan rather than a restructuring plan, according to union representatives.
Union officials announced on Monday afternoon that they would examine whether the job cuts exceed 10% of staff.
If this threshold is reached, AGC would be required to follow the Renault procedure, which involves additional protocols for mass layoffs. Representatives plan to investigate recent redundancies to determine the full impact.
Staff meetings are scheduled to take place on Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning.
