General Cable Announces 1,000 Layoffs in Restructuring for Better Profitability

General Cable, Highland Heights, Ky., this week announced a restructuring program that the wire and cable giant expects to produce annual savings of $75 million. The move, designed to improve profitability and return on invested capital, focuses on closing underperforming assets and consolidation and realignment of other facilities, the company said in a release. It also includes reductions in expenses tied to sales, general and administrative functions.

General Cable expects to eliminate approximately 1,000 positions globally, representing nearly 7% of the company’s workforce, which will happen over the next 12 months. The company also revised its expected financial results for investors, saying “global demand and pricing remains uneven as the tepid pace of the recovery continues to hamper growth in key end markets. As a result, management is tempering its expectations for the second half of the year principally due to the lack of consistent momentum in utility and construction spending in North America and Latin America as well as ongoing headwinds expected in Spain and Thailand.”

Overall, General Cable said it’s expecting adjusted operating income for the full year of 2014 to be in the range of $200 million to $230 million, down from its previously communicated estimate of around $230 million.