Published: Monday, 17th November, 2008 14:00
Car rental firm hit by job cuts
By Lucy Crossley
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A CAR rental company is to cut 315 jobs – 5% of its total work force – including redundancies at its Bracknell HQ.
Avis Europe plc, announced on Monday that they would be closing some rental locations and transferring staff from its UK business head office in Hayes, Middlesex to their Group Headquarters in Park Road, Bracknell.
Avis said volumes had “noticeably weakened” in the fourth quarter of the year and there had been a decline in the number of individuals hiring cars.
Chief executive Pascal Bazin said: “We have taken decisive action to raise pricing, reduce costs and maintain flexibility.”
As Midweek went to press the company had not revealed exactly how many jobs would be lost in Bracknell.
But it said there would be a rigorous recruitment freeze, a faster release of seasonal staff and significant cuts in discretionary spending.
The company said the changes will save €16m or £13.7m, a year.
Mr Bazin said: “Together with the ongoing improvements in our product and customer service levels, these actions will help position the business for the likely continued difficult conditions in 2009 and also for the longer term.”
Avis is also feeling the impact of the weaker used car market, particularly in Spain, with some concerns in France and Italy.
The company, which operates the Avis and Budget brands in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, now expects fleet costs to be greater than anticipated over the second half of the year.
It is now unlikely to better last year’s underlying profits when the preliminary results for the year are announced next March.
l Have you been affected by company closures or redundancies?
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