Unilever, a consumer goods company with North Jersey locations, to cut 7,500 jobs
Unilever, a popular national consumer goods company, is cutting 7,500 jobs and overhauling its business model with a spin-off of its ice cream unit, which includes the iconic Ben & Jerry's brand.
Unilever, which has research and development headquarters in Englewood Cliffs and a warehouse in Cresskill, wants to pivot from its ice cream brands because a "different ownership structure" would better suit the dessert's future, the company announced on Tuesday morning.
The consumer company announced it will cut 7,500 global jobs to boost profits and save the company more than $860 million over the next three years, according to a company statement.
It was not made clear on Tuesday if any of the job cuts will be at the New Jersey locations.
Unilever's Growth Action Plan calls for investing more in technology to drive focus and faster growth, the company said.
The group's ice cream unit generated more than 7.9 billion euros ($8.6 billion) in sales last year. Along with the popular brand Ben & Jerry's, Unilever's ice cream department includes the brands Magnum and Wall's.
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Unilever's overall revenue growth saw a year-to-year decline according to its quarterly financial report released in December.
Ben & Jerry's, which has run as an independent board since Unilever's purchase, has been involved in some controversies as the ice cream brand is very outspoken about social justice issues. The co-founders of the shop advocated to end sales in the West Bank, saying the Israeli occupation does not align with the morals of the brand. Unilever renewed the Israeli license holder's contract, which prompted Ben & Jerry's to sue the U.S. District Court in Manhattan.
Unilever's other brands include health and beauty products such as Dove and Axe, food products such as Hellmann's Mayonnaise and other consumer products such as Surf detergent.
Unilever in New Jersey
In 2018, Unilever wanted to attract current and recent college graduates to its North American headquarters in Englewood Cliffs. To do that, it decided it had to build the workplace of the future.
The multinational food and consumer goods company renovated the suburban corporate campus into one that was more environmentally friendly, more efficient and less expensive to operate.
The end result was a 325,000-square-foot building at 700 Sylvan Ave., with lots of open and shared spaces, and no assigned desks.
The renovated building housed 1,450 Unilever employees and about 350 independent contractors, for a total of 1,800 workers on a typical day in 2018.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Unilever, consumer goods company with NJ locations, to cut 7,500 jobs
