Coca Cola To Offer Buyouts To 4,000 Workers In North America
Coca-Cola is slated to cut thousands of jobs and reduce its number of business units as the beverage behemoth faces declining sales during the COVID-19 pandemic, as CNN reports.
On Friday (Aug. 28), Coke said the job cuts would come via involuntary and voluntary reductions. The company plans on offering buyouts to 4,000 employees in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico while offering similar voluntary programs in other countries.
Coke said it plans to reduce its number of operating units from their current total of 17 businesses in four regions to nine operating units in those areas.
The company plans to focus on its most popular segments, including its main Coca-Cola line and products like sports drinks, coffees, and teas. Coke also wants to expand in vastly popular categories such as plant-based drinks and sparkling water.
In addition to that, the company plans to do away with “zombie brands” or those that aren’t growing. The company discontinued its Odwalla smoothie brand in July, for example. The company saw sales drop 28% to $7.2 billion in its second quarter, which ended on June 26.
