Procter & Gamble May Cut Jobs

Procter & Gamble Co. is reportedly considering job cuts that could eliminate 10 percent to 20 percent of its global work force in response to the economic downturn. According to an article in The Wall Street Journal, the Cincinnati-based consumer products giant is examining the possibility of more cuts to compensate for past restructurings that haven’t gone far enough.

The newspaper, citing unidentified people familiar with the discussions, said P&G could cut as many as 22,000 jobs from its work force of about 110,000. If it does so, the maker of Crest toothpaste, Tide detergent and Pampers diapers would be joining a number of other major companies planning large work force cuts including DaimlerChrysler AG, Compaq Computer Corp., Lucent Technologies and Motorola Corp.

P&G spokeswoman Linda Ulrey said Wednesday the company’s policy is not to comment on rumors or speculation. An internal company task force led by Steve Donovan, a senior executive, is examining P&G’s operating costs, looking for structural changes as well as head-count reductions, the Journal said. Procter & Gamble has been struggling for more than two years and announced a plan in early 1999 to cut 15,000 jobs mostly through attrition and early retirement over five years, But the Journal said few staffers have left and the cuts under consideration would compensate for that and go deeper. On Wednesday, Ms. Ulrey noted that the 1999 program, called Organization 2005, “is still ongoing.”

According to the article, an internal company task force led by Steve Donovan, a senior executive, is examining P&G’s operating costs, looking for structural changes as well as as well as head-count reductions. It isn’t clear if P&G has determined the extent of the cuts or the timing for eliminating an positions.