UK jobs at risk as advertising group cuts back

Published on Sunday 3 May 2009 13:22

UK jobs could be shed as part of plans by advertising and marketing group WPP to axe 7,200 global positions this year, it was reported today.

A report in the Observer said "scores" of people in London, as well as elsewhere in the UK, could be affected as the firm looks to reduce its global headcount by a total of 6% to 106,000 by the end of 2009.

WPP has already cut around half this number from its workforce amid efforts to combat tough conditions in the recession.

The London-based business has suffered as difficult economic conditions lead companies to slash their advertising and marketing expenditure.

It is understood the jobs will be lost either through redundancy or natural wastage, where those that leave are not replaced.

The firm has said almost a third of the roles already lost were as a result of not replacing workers, rather than severance.

No-one from WPP was available to comment today.

Last week WPP warned of a profits shortfall as the recession saw it miss revenue targets in the first quarter. Underlying like-for-like revenues fell 5.8% in the first three months of the year.

"In the balance of 2009, the short-term focus will continue to be on balancing the likely fall in revenues against staff costs and headcount," the company said.

"The first half of 2009 will clearly be very difficult, with the second half, although continuing to be tough, likely to improve relatively."

WPP said its UK and US markets had suffered the worse effects in the economic slowdown.

But it said Latin America, Africa and Eastern Continental Europe still showed like-for-like growth.

WPP is the world's second biggest advertising firm and owns famous names such as Ogilvy & Mather and J Walter Thompson. In October it completed the takeover of market research firm TNS in a deal worth 1.6 billion.