Procter & Gamble is to shed 330 staff in the UK as it moves production to eastern Europe...factories in Borispol, Ukraine and Budapest, Hungary

By E. Morgan Williams
ArtUkraine Information Service (ARTUIS)
Kyiv, Ukraine
Wednesday, January 15, 2003

Procter & Gamble is closing its Tampax tampon factory in Leigh Park, Havant, Hants, United Kingdom and shifting the production its factories in Borispol, Kyiv Region, Ukraine, and Budapest, Hungary.

Procter & Gamble says the move is necessary to keep its business competitive. Production at the P&G factory in the UK will be reduced over the next few months with the factory closing sown in spring of 2004, a company spokeswoman said, according to the Ananova news organization in Leeds.

The spokeswoman says the company is working with its employees in the UK to find them job opportunities in other parts of the organization or to offer them retirement and separation packages.

The leader of Havant Borough Council, David Gillett, told the Ananova news group (www.ananova.com) the closure will have an impact on the economy of the local area and a task force is being set up to find jobs for those whose positions are being eliminated.

David Gillet said: "Although we are extremely disappointed with their decision, the company has shown responsibility to the local area in the past and we hope they will continue to do so as they wind down their operations here."

P&G products have been available in Ukraine since 1990 and a company office was set up in Kyiv in 1993. The Tambrands-Ukraine plant in Boryspil, Kyiv region, was established a few years later. The plant manufactures Tampax hygienic tampons a high percentage of which are exported into the Eastern and Western European countries.

Today Procter & Gamble offers to the Ukrainian market many of its brands including Ariel and Tide detergents; Pantene Pro-V, Head&Shoulders shampoos; Safeguard soap; Blend-a-Med toothpaste; Pampers diapers; hygienic pads and others.

In November of 2000 Procter and Gamble Eastern Europe launched a new Distribution Center in Lviv, Ukraine. The Distribution Center was the first in Ukraine and the second in Eastern Europe.

P&G said the decision to locate in Lviv was made because of the unique geographic position of the Lviv region, which would allow P&G to improve the system of the company's products delivery in the consumer network of all Eastern Europe including Ukraine.

The P&G complex in Lviv includes customs operations, storage, pre-sale preparation according to the needs of consumers, forming of the orders and loading of goods. The projected capacity of the center when completed will allow it to process 48,000 Euro-pallets of products per year.