French firm to axe jobs

Mar 5 2008 by Graeme King, The Journal

MORE than 40 jobs are being cut at the Newcastle base of outsourcing firm Capgemini, which carries out work for HM Revenue & Customs.

The French firm is cutting 450 jobs nationwide after HMRC decided to make cutbacks on its Aspire IT contract and that will mean 44 workers at its Longbenton office losing their jobs.

The Aspire deal was one of the world’s largest IT outsourcing deals when it was awarded in 2004 and constituted one of the largest contracts in IT outsourcing history.

The news from Capgemini follows plans from the Department for Work and Pensions to cut 12,000 jobs from its operations nationwide.

David Boulter, Capgemini chief executive, said: “We are working with outplacement service providers to support all staff affected by the closure and help them to explore other employment opportunities.”

Last month the company announced a 13% increase in revenue last year to £656m.

A statement from Capgemini said the company had been obliged to cut costs after the Government’s Comprehensive Spending Review required HMRC to make “substantial savings” in its operating expenditure.