Chevron to sack 25% of its workforce in Nigeria

Chevron Nigeria Limited has announced that it will be reducing its workforce by 25% as it is reviewing its manpower requirements in light of the changing business environment.

The disclosure was made by Chevron Nigeria Limited on Friday, October 2, 2020, in a statement titled ‘Chevron Nigeria Limited reviews workforce in accordance with business exigencies’.

The American oil major said it would continue to evaluate opportunities to improve capital efficiency and reduce operating costs.

The General Manager Policy, Government and Public Affairs of Chevron Nigeria Limited, Esimaje Brikinn, said, “The aim is to have a business that is competitive and have an appropriately sized organisation with improved processes. This will increase efficiency and effectiveness, retain value, reduce cost, and generate more revenue for the Federal Government of Nigeria.”

According to him, the new organizational structure will, unfortunately, require approximately 25 per cent reduction in the workforce across the various levels of the organisation.

He said, ‘’It is important to note that all our employees will retain their employment until the reorganisation process is completed,”

He, however, pointed out that there were no plans to migrate Nigerian jobs outside the country.

Brikinn said, “We have prospects for our company in Nigeria; however, we must make the necessary adjustments in light of the prevailing business climate; and we need everyone’s support to get through these tough times stronger, more efficient and more profitable, in order to sustain the business.’’

“We are actively engaging our workforce to ensure they understand why this is being done. We will continue to consistently engage all relevant stakeholders, including the leadership of the employee unions as we continue this process of business optimisation.”

This is coming barely a day after Royal Dutch Shell announced plans to cut its workforce by between 7,000 and 9,000 staff globally, which includes Nigeria that is one of its major area of operation. This represents about 11% of its total staff.

The crash in oil prices which was triggered by the coronavirus pandemic has also seen Shell’s peers take drastic steps to shore up the balance sheet. BP Plc said in June it planned to cut 10,000 jobs, Chevron Corp. intends to trim 10% to 15% of its global workforce, while Exxon Mobil Corp. is reviewing staffing country by country.