Glaxo Cuts More Jobs At North Carolina Plant

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glaxo-zebulonThe drugmaker is laying off 90 workers, or 10 percent of its headcount, at its manufacturing plant in Zebulon, North Carolina, The Triangle Business Journal reports. The move brings employment at the plant to between 850 and 900, down from 1,350 a year ago. The most recent major layoffs before the current round took place were in February, when 70 jobs were eliminated.

Glaxo has been steadily cutting its workforce in the region since October 2007, when the drugmaker announced a cost-cutting program to save $1.4 billion across the globe by 2010. Workers from sales reps to mid-level managers to R&D staffers have been cut from Research Triangle Park, where employment has fallen to an estimated 4,500 workers from 5,000 a year earlier.

The Zebulon plant mostly makes the Advair DISKUS, an inhaled form of the top-selling asthma drug. Workers at the site also make the tablet forms of Valtrex, a genital herpes treatment, and Lamictal, used to treat epilepsy and bipolar disorder. But a Glaxo spokesman says additional cuts may be coming. “It’s something that we will continue to evaluate,” she says. “Right now, we just don’t know.”

Just the same, Glaxo ceo Andrew Witty showed up on the drugmaker’s new YouTube channel this week to make a pitch why Glaxo is a good place to work.

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  1. Regardless as to these announced reductions in workforce, the major life sciences companies continue to hire in droves as they experience natural attrition in key functional areas on an annual basis. It is a common misperception that because they are ‘downsizing’ their overall headcount that they may not be hiring new talent.

    The reality is just the opposite. Don’t give up on these companies simply because of press releases about layoffs & cutbacks; there are still opportunities to be had for talented professionals in key functional areas.

  2. ‘continue to hire in droves’ ?

    maybe in China & India

    not in USA

    GSK is moving jobs as fast as it can from US/UK to China

    Any hiring in US is entry-level.

    No jobs for experienced folks

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