The Guinness and Smirnoff owner said in a statement that it had outlined proposals that wold see “a number” of commercial roles in Northern Ireland cut as part of a “consolidation” process.
Food Manufacture understands that approximately 60 jobs will be lost as a result of the proposals.
A Diageo spokesperson said: “In order to support Diageo’s future growth ambition and to optimise our customer support processes, we propose to consolidate some commercial operations capabilities from Diageo Northern Ireland into our Commercial Experience Centre of Excellence in India.
“This proposed transition may impact a number of commercial operations roles at Diageo Northern Ireland, and we are committed to supporting our employees through a comprehensive consultation process and provide support during this transition period.”
To planned job cuts come at a time of upheaval for Diageo, which saw former CEO Debra Crew leave the business in July.
Interim CEO Nik Jhangiani has since confirmed that job cuts would be part of the company’s cost-savings strategy, which was launched in response to falling profits.
According to Just Drinks, Jhangiani told reporters: “Yes, there will be some, but that’s not what this is about. This is about really freeing up resources and dollars where we can reinvest for the business, right?”
He then added: “This could ultimately actually be about more numbers in terms of head count, as we look at more feet on the street, for example, including here in our home market.”
Diageo has also sold off a series of brands and only this week agreed to the sale of Irish cream liqueur brand Sheridan’s to Casa Redondo.
