Siemens cutting 16,750 jobs worldwide to cut costs

By GEORGE FREY AP Business Writer FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) - Industrial conglomerate Siemens AG said Tuesday it would cut 16,750 jobs, or 4.2 percent of its global work force, to streamline operations and cut nearly $2 billion in costs in the face of a slowing economy. The Munich-based maker of trams and wind turbines said the cuts would include 12,600 administrative jobs as well as another 4,150 positions involving restructuring at its various units. The company has a worldwide work force of approximately 400,000 people. Siemens said the cuts were being made in an effort to reduce total costs by 1.2 billion euros ($1.8 billion) by 2010. "The speed at which business is changing worldwide has increased considerably, and we're orienting Siemens accordingly," said chief executive Peter Loescher in a statement announcing the cuts,... [read full story]