About 700 employees on a plant producing wires for foreign trucks have been laid off in Karelia. The factory has failed to reorganize its business model for the Russian market. The regional Ministry of Economic Development reported the news on February 3.
The plant in the city of Kostomuksha was previously owned by the Finnish company PKC Eesti AS. It had been producing electrical wiring for foreign-made trucks but failed to quickly adapt to the needs of the Russian market.
Employees were informed about the layoffs on October 7 when the management announced that 75% of the plant's employees would be dismissed. With the total number of employees at one thousand people, 700 of them, according to the “Stolitsa na Onego” portal, were to be laid off.
With the beginning of Russian aggression in Ukraine, many foreign brands have suspended or closed their Russian divisions. The Swedish company IKEA shut down its stores and let the employees go. However, some IKEA workers in the Leningrad, Kirov, and Novgorod regions have been able to keep their jobs after the change of ownership.
In Izhevsk, nearly 1.5 thousand employees were laid off at the AvtoVAZ company. The carmaker is experiencing production difficulties due to the shortage of imported components. To keep workers employed the administration offers them to paint walls, mow lawns, and collect garbage.
