KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) -- Pfizer Inc. is cutting 275 jobs at its biggest manufacturing plant, in Michigan, in its latest restructuring move.
The job eliminations in Kalamazoo will affect supervisory and support staff, and some operational staff such as project engineers, Pfizer spokesman Rick Chambers said Monday, shortly after the cuts were announced.
Chambers said the cuts would start in the next month and would be completed by the end of the year, although some jobs might not be eliminated until early next year.
The affected plant makes sterile injectable drugs, liquid medications, ointments and active ingredients for pills, including some made in Kalamazoo and others completed at Pfizer plants all over the world. Among the plant's human and animal medicines are the antibiotic Zyvox and the three-month birth control injection Depo-Provera.
Pfizer, the world's biggest drug company, now has about 80,000 employees worldwide, including 2,700 at the Kalamazoo manufacturing plant. It will still have a total of about 3,200 workers in the southwestern Michigan city, including hundreds who work in research and development for Pfizer's veterinary products.
Pfizer is in the midst of a major restructuring project aimed at cutting costs by $1.5 billion to $2 billion by the end of this year, through steps including eliminating 11,000 jobs and closing eight facilities.
In April, the company reported an 18 percent drop in its first-quarter profit, citing tougher competition from generic drugs. It is set to report second-quarter results on July 23.