Medtronic to Cut 1,100 Jobs From Global Work Force

Medical device maker Medtronic Inc. said Tuesday it is planning to cut its work force by about 1,100 jobs, or about 3 percent, during the current fiscal year as part of a global restructuring.

Spokeswoman Marybeth Thorsgaard said the cuts will come from Medtronic businesses that are no longer growing at previous rates, but she did not specify which ones. She also said the company would add jobs in fast-growing businesses, including neuromodulation devices.

She said some manufacturing and research and development operations will be consolidated.

For example, the company intends to consolidate endovascular manufacturing in its Galway, Ireland, facilities while moving jobs from Santa Rosa, Calif. It also intends to move research and development functions for its beneath-the-skin diagnostics and monitoring products from the Netherlands to Minneapolis.

Thorsgaard said Fridley-based Medtronic employs about 39,500 people worldwide, with about 60 percent in the United States and 40 percent overseas.

Medtronic’s shares closed Tuesday down 3 cents at $49.01.

In February, the company reported that its third-quarter earnings fell 89 percent from the year before due to charges from lawsuit settlements and acquisition costs.

Medtronic said it earned $77 million, or 7 cents per share, in the quarter that ended Jan. 25, compared with $710 million, or 61 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding the charges, Medtronic would have earned $713 million, or 63 cents per share.

President and Chief Executive Officer Bill Hawkins said it was a difficult quarter for the company’s core cardiac rhythm disease management business due to a recall of its Sprint Fidelis wires in late 2007.

However, he predicted a stronger fourth quarter with the launch of its Endeavor drug-coated stents in the United States and the addition of other products.

Thorsgaard said Tuesday that the global reorganization was independent of both events and said the company “is growing at a healthy 9 percent to 11 percent” rate.

Medtronic is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter and year-end results on May 20.

SOURCE: AP