Tobacco Industry Vranje laid off 166 workers

- Tobacco Industry Vranje (DIV) has laid off 166 workers because of the losses and adaptation to the market circumstances – the Director General, Mike Edwards, said yesterday (July 19, 2009).

Edwards told "Beta" agency that additional 37 out of total of 319 workers had expressed wish to leave the cigarette factory voluntarily, with the severance pays that were significantly higher than the ones stipulated by the Law.

- The workers who have been declared as surplus manpower will receive about 17,000 EUR each, and Mobile center that should help these workers find the job after they leave the factory will be opened in the factory tomorrow – said Edwards.

According to his words, experts will try to advise these workers on how to find a new job or start their own business, and an expert training will be organized for additional qualification and change of vocation for the workers who may stay in the factory.

- Starting next year, DIV will have 161 workers – said Edwards.

The coordinator of the project for new business organization, Gradimir Milić, said that the reorganization of the company, including dismissal of workers, reduction of expenses, higher productivity and efficiency and adaptation to the conditions in the global market, would save DIV from closing.

- After privatization, company BAT has invested over 110m EUR in Serbia, mainly through capital investments. In that way, the amount of mandatory investments from the sales contract that company BAT signed in 2003 was significantly exceeded – said Milić.

- The company has increased its share in Serbian market by 50% and it has localized production of leading international brands in Vranje, and the need for redefinition of business comes as the result of changes in close surroundings - he added.

It has been told "Beta" agency that the restructuring process in DIV was transparent because it equally involved the representatives of employees. It has been confirmed that BAT will stay in Vranje and that the speculations that it will leave the south of Serbia have not been true.

For commercial reasons, Tobacco Industry Vranje did not sign the contract on purchase of dry tobacco leaves from the manufacturers in the south of Serbia in 2009.