Novartis to cut over 2000 jobs
Move exemplifies a wave of manufacturing cuts as pharma moves to more high-value, specialised medicines
Novartis is to cut over 2000 positions at its Swiss operations by 2022. The Basel-headquartered company has around 12,800 staff in Switzerland, roughly 10% of its global workforce. The move is typical of a wider shift underway in big pharma, as it moves to try focus on higher value medicines and increase profit margins.
Novartis said the job cuts are part of a strategic shift. ‘On the manufacturing side, our medicine portfolio is evolving from high-volume products to more specialised and personalised innovative medicines. We now need to adapt our manufacturing network to better suit this changing portfolio,’ chief executive Vas Narasimhan said during a press briefing.