Redundancies, MD To Go At Electrolux

Managing Director of Small Appliances, John Mahar, is also to leave the post prior to the completion of the division restructure, due to be complete by fourth quarter this year.

The new Sydney based team will be headed by Electrolux Major Appliances ex-national sales manager Derek Haley, who will take on the role of general manager, Small Appliances.

24 staff are to be made redundant as part of the overhaul, necessary to cut costs and increase synergies in the Small Appliances division, which will now share resources with Electrolux Major Appliances including key account management, sales, technical support and call centres.

“Working as one Electrolux within the new business model will allow Small Appliances to reduce costs and gain significant efficiencies by sharing resources and processes with the Australian operations of Electrolux Major Appliances,” said Electrolux Small Appliances Asia Pacific president Claus Anderson.

“In Australia, we see clear synergies in both the ‘front-end’ to increase account coverage and in the ‘back-end’ in accounting, finance, IT and customer care.

“The new Small Appliances operations will be better equipped to serve customers in a co-ordinated way and increase the number of customers receiving direct sales support.”

Electrolux service centre will remain operating in Victoria.

Marketing and product functions for Australia and New Zealand will be retained within the Small Appliances business. New Zealand Sales and Operations are unaffected.

But a further 28 jobs are to go from the appliance giants’ factory floor at its plant at Orange, NSW, as part of “natural attrition,” reports Central Western Daily.

The Orange based plant has come under increasing pressure in recent months to cut costs, with the threat of production moving to cheaper economies including Thailand looming.

The plant is currently undergoing a six month assessment by Electrolux to determine its future viability.