Unilever to cut 1,500 jobs after activist Peltz builds stake

[LONDON] Unilever plans to cut 15% of its senior managerial jobs to speed decision-making after activist investor Nelson Peltz built a stake in the consumer-goods giant.

Unilever said Tuesday it will cut 1,500 positions, also reducing junior-management staff by 5%. The company employs about 150,000 people globally, and is reorganising its businesses into five groups.

The shares rose as much as 0.5% in London on Tuesday morning. Bloomberg earlier reported the company planned to reduce staff.

CEO Alan Jope is at a crucial juncture three years into his job. He has come under increasing pressure to chart a new course as the company's share price lagged rivals.

Unilever last week abandoned its pursuit of GlaxoSmithKline's consumer healthcare business after the drugmaker rejected its overtures and investors disparaged the offer.

Fund manager Terry Smith called the bid a "near-death experience." Only days earlier, he had urged Unilever to focus more on fixing its own business than seeking to promote the sustainability ethos of brands such as Hellmann's mayonnaise.

BLOOMBERG