ABI Cuts More Jobs in US

Anheuser-Busch announces job cuts from its domestic breweries

Anheuser-Busch announced that there were more job cuts in most of its US breweries although the company did not specify how many, only stating that it was a “small number.”

In a statement, the company said “as an ongoing practice, we continually assess our resources to reflect our current business strategies and needs. In some areas of the business, we are making operational changes that may result in selected job eliminations or additions in various locations.”

“We will always be challenging ourselves to find better ways to run our business,” The statement continued.

It is unclear whether additional job cuts are planned.

A week ago, parent company Anheuser-Busch InBev said it planned to cut up to 800 jobs across western Europe, or about 10 percent of its 8,000 workers there. Employees in Belgium, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands and Luxembourg are affected. Sales of beer by volume dropped nearly 6 percent in western Europe during the first nine months of 2009.

In Belgium, the brewer’s world headquarters, the company plans to lay off up to 263 workers, or about 10 percent of its 2,700 employees there, in response to a drop in sales and the recession. The news prompted workers to protest and take their bosses hostage in Belgium, according to media reports. The hostages were later released.

Following its acquisition of St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch last year, A-B InBev cut 1,400 salaried workers from its U.S. work force and left another 250 positions vacant.

It is unclear whether additional job cuts are planned.

A week ago, parent company Anheuser-Busch InBev said it planned to cut up to 800 jobs across western Europe, or about 10 percent of its 8,000 workers there. Employees in Belgium, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands and Luxembourg are affected. Sales of beer by volume dropped nearly 6 percent in western Europe during the first nine months of 2009.