Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR (UL.US) plans to reduce the number of layoffs in Europe and transfer some employees to the ice cream business department.

Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR (UL.US) European Works Council chief said the company will cut about 1,500 fewer jobs in Europe than originally expected and will hire approximately 1,000 people primarily affected by cost-cutting plans for its soon-to-be divested ice cream business. Under the leadership of CEO Hein Schumacher, the UK-based company has been working to streamline its operations over the past year. The company's shareholders also include billionaire activist investor and board member Nelson Peltz. Prior to his appointment, Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR had been underperforming for years and criticized for allowing its brand portfolio to grow to around 400, leaving management with limited time to focus on top-performing brands. Some investors have also expressed concern that Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR is slow to recover profit margins post-COVID-19 and in need of streamlining its operations. Earlier this year, Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR announced plans to cut 7,500 jobs globally as part of a restructuring to save around 800 million euros ($8.45 billion). The company also announced it will divest its ice cream division including brands like Ben & Jerry's and Magnum. The European Works Council (UEWC) of Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR strongly criticized these decisions, stating that the ice cream business restructuring could have been successfully carried out internally. UEWC chairman Hermann Soggeberg stated on Friday that the company reached an agreement with Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR in October to cut approximately 1,700 jobs in Europe, down from the initial estimate of 3,200 jobs. "We have been in intense negotiations with the company all summer," Soggeberg said. He noted that Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR is still delivering on its promise to reduce expenses to investors, but through savings projects from 2022 to 2024 and a freeze on external hiring, the company can significantly reduce job cuts in Europe. Soggeberg mentioned that Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR's European ice cream business will create about 1,000 new job positions, mainly for employees affected by cuts in other Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR businesses. "They are planning for ice cream growth," Soggeberg said. "We have agreed with Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR that the hiring of these people will be synchronized with the job cuts plan." Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR had previously stated that the ice cream business divestment is expected to be completed by the end of 2025 and will move to a separate headquarters in Amsterdam. Unilever PLC Sponsored ADR did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the matter.