Nokia to trim another 490 jobs

The world's largest mobile phone maker Nokia will be slashing its global workforce again by another 490 jobs, with as many as 170 positions to go in logistics, production management and production support areas.

Faced with a slump in business due to the global financial turmoil, Nokia has already announced over 3,500 job cuts this year, as part of cost saving efforts.

Nokia in a statement today said its reorganising efforts would globally affect nearly "170 employees working in logistics, production management and production support.

"The plans do not affect production employees at Nokia's mobile device manufacturing facilities."

Nokia has about 10,000 employees, including nearly 8,000 workers at its manufacturing plant in Chennai.

Meanwhile, the company would be offering Voluntary Resignation Package for 320 employees at its mobile device manufacturing facility in Salo, Finland. In February, Nokia had given the package to 1,000 employees.

"These measures are part of Nokia's previously announced plans to adjust its business operations and cost base in accordance with market demand and safeguard future competitiveness," the statement said.

The latest Voluntary Resignation Package would be available for 320 employees working at the Salo manufacturing facility from June 1 to June 30, 2009.

"The earlier Voluntary Resignation Package we offered to 1,000 Nokia employees in February raised a lot of interest among production employees, who were excluded from this particular global program.

"We now want to offer this opportunity to our production employees in Salo, as we continue to adjust capacity according to market demand," Ville Valtonen, head of Human Resources, Nokia, Finland said.

In March, the Finnish mobile phone maker said it would reduce its workforce by 1,700 employees.

Nokia had earlier announced that it aims to reduce cost by euro 700 million in the coming years.