MeadWestvaco Will Cut 2,000 Jobs, 10% of Its Workers

By Christopher Donville

Jan. 15 (Bloomberg) -- MeadWestvaco Corp., North America’s second-largest maker of glossy cardboard, will eliminate about 2,000 jobs, or 10 percent of its workforce, amid falling demand for packaging.

The cuts, about 800 of which will come in the first quarter, will save $100 million this year, Glen Allen, Virginia-based MeadWestvaco said today in a statement. The company also will shut or restructure as many as 14 manufacturing operations.

MeadWestvaco has been closing plants and eliminating jobs as the slowing global economy weakens demand for consumer goods and packaging. The company last month said it would shut down a plant in the Netherlands, affecting 60 workers.

“We have been taking aggressive steps over the past several months to help ensure we perform in today’s uncertain environment, and are poised to take advantage of the stronger, more stable periods that are sure to come,” Chief Executive Officer John A. Luke Jr. said today in the statement.

MeadWestvaco will release its fourth-quarter financial results on Jan. 28.

MeadWestvaco fell rose 56 cents, or 5.1 percent, to $11.55 at 4:15 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The shares dropped 64 percent last year.

To contact the reporter on this story: Christopher Donville in Vancouver atcjdonville@bloomberg.net.