HELSINKI, April 28 (Reuters) – German shipyard Meyer Werft’s Finnish subsidiary on Tuesday started statutory talks to lay off up to 450 of its roughly 2,000 employees because of a hit to business from the coronavirus pandemic.
The shipyard, in Turku on Finland’s west coast, had initially started talks over temporary layoffs, but said the market situation had now forced it to look for permanent cuts.
“These negotiations will include the permanent layoff of 450 people and another 900 are affected by other measures. These include temporary layoffs of different length, work time adjustments and other arrangements,” the company said in a statement.
Instead of ramping-up from one to two large ships delivered per year until 2023, the assumption is now that the Turku yard will build just one large cruise ship per year, it added.
“The corona pandemic has changed the situation unexpectedly and totally. We are facing the fact that the corona-caused pause in cruising requires to stretch the order book,” said Meyer Turku Chief Executive Jan Meyer. (Reporting by Anne Kauranen; Editing by Mark Potter)
(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2019.Updated: November 17, 2020 (Originally published April 28, 2020)
This article contains reporting from Reuters, published under license.
Sign up for gCaptain’s newsletter and never miss an update
Essential maritime and offshore news, insights, and updates delivered daily straight to your inbox
Carnival Corp cut its annual profit forecast on Friday, as higher fuel costs pressure the cruise operator's margins amid rising geopolitical tensions.
Cruise operators face choppy waters as rising oil prices lift fuel costs, with analysts warning Carnival Corp CCL.N could take the biggest hit to its 2026 profit as it is the only major U.S. cruise line that does not hedge fuel.
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings has ordered three new cruise ships from Fincantieri—one each for Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises, and Regent Seven Seas Cruises—with deliveries scheduled for 2036–2037. The deal secures valuable European shipyard capacity through 2037 and brings NCLH’s total orderbook to 17 vessels, supporting a projected 4% annual capacity growth through the next decade.
Subscribe to gCaptain Daily and stay informed with the latest global maritime and offshore news
Essential news coupled with the finest maritime content sourced from across the globe.
Sign Up
Join The Club
