March 28, 2006, AFX News Limited
Schering worker representatives on supervisory board abstain on Bayer bid vote
FRANKFURT (AFX) – Schering AG‚s worker representatives on the supervisory board abstained from voting on the takeover offer from Bayer AG, head of the works council Norbert Deutschmann told the Financial Times Deutschland.
Yesterday, the Berlin-based pharmaceutical company said the supervisory board had voted in favour of the bid and that it would recommend shareholders to accept it, but representatives of the workers declined to vote.
‘We didn‚t want to give them carte blanche,‘ Deutschmann said. ‚As long as the effects on jobs and structures of the takeover are unclear, we decided against actively supporting the offer,‘ he added. Bayer has said it wants to cut some 6,000 jobs from the merged company‚s worldwide workforce. (ragnhild.kjetland@afxnews.com)
AFX News Limited
Bayer plans no further disposals to fund Schering bid; to cut 6000 jobs
Bayer AG plans no further disposals to finance its 16.3 bln eur acquisition of Schering AG and aims to cut around 6,000 jobs from the enlarged company, chief executive officer Werner Wenning said during an analyst conference call this morning.
Earlier today, Bayer said that to part-finance the acquisition it will sell two subsidiaries of its MaterialScience unit — HC Starck and Wolff Walsrode — as they no longer fit the core business. MaterialScience will in the future focus on polycarbonate and isocyanate chemistries.
In terms of job reductions, the merged company will cut some 6,000 jobs, or 10 pct of the total Schering/Bayer Pharma workforce, the CEO said.
How this will pan out within the two different organisations is still undecided, but a company spokesman said after the conference call that an ‘integration-team‚ will be established to evaluate job cuts and other integration issues in the combined company. Bayer wants to achieve synergies of 700 mln eur annually within three years of the completion of the transaction.
Friday, March 24, 2006 – FreeMarketNews.com
BAYER PLANS TO CUT 6,000 JOBS
Bayer AG, Germany‘s biggest drug company, plans to eliminate 6,000 jobs after its 16.3 billion-euro ($19.5 billion) purchase of rival Schering AG. The job cuts represent 5 percent of the enlarged company‚s workforce. Chief Executive Officer Werner Wenning would eliminate mostly office jobs, he said on a conference call. Bayer yesterday trumped a 14.6 billion-euro bid by Merck KGaA. The Schering purchase would almost double Bayer‘s drug sales, easing concern that the pharmaceutical unit is too small to compete in the world market. Schering shares rose as much as 5.3 percent today, exceeding the Bayer offer price on speculation Merck or another suitor may bid more for the maker of Yasmin contraceptives.