#europe

Romania
Italy
Netherlands
Spain
Germany
France

Any managers in EU, please weigh in whether you know the dates when the notification goes out.

https://www.retaildetail.eu/news/fashion/strike-at-nikes-european-distribution-center-in-protest-against-the-restructuring-plan/

Is it true that they will lay
off less than 30 people? Is this the total number or the number for each legal entity? End of May is when people will need to leave or when they'll be notified?

There's now evidence that IBM does the "buyout" spiel to shake the tree and see what fruit falls. Later the chipping of the branches will commence.

https://techrights.org/n/2026/04/28/IBM_is_Already_Doing_Voluntary_Layoffs_This_Year_in_Europe_Buyo.shtml

Wonder what is the valid reason they going to give...

An increase of $5,000,000,000+ in debt in just 3 months!

https://techrights.org/n/2026/04/24/IBM_s_Debt_Increased_Over_5_Billion_in_3_Months_While_IBM_Laid_.shtml

The question was when will the European internal hiring freeze be lifted and is there another layoff coming soon. It was responded by effectively “Hiring freeze will not be lifted any time soon. Anyways I think everyone should be building agents. Next question!”

Yikes. No comment on the layoffs is quite telling but I could be reading too much into it

I mean, why not. Many of us will either be laid off soon or will leave anyway. I am not counting on any raise, but why not try it? Why make it easier for them, if they are not doing it easier for us, what is the worst that can happen, we have nothing to lose really.

European oil refining margins turn negative, bucking global trend
4/14/2026 12:00:00 PM

European refining margins turn negative despite record fuel prices, IEA and traders report
Asian refiners' competition for crude drives up costs, squeezing European margins
Simpler European refineries may cut runs if margin pressure persists, analysts and sources say
European oil refining margins have turned negative, lagging stronger margins in Asia and the U.S., as competition for crude from Asian buyers due to the Iran war drives up costs even as fuel prices hit record highs, according to IEA data and trade sources.

Northwest European light sweet hydroskimming margins dropped to an average of minus $6.45 a barrel in the week beginning April 6, the IEA said in its monthly report.

Margins for medium sour cracking were also in negative territory, the data showed. Light sweet cracking margins remain positive, though they have also weakened significantly.

The margin squeeze is a consequence of the surge in physical crude prices to record highs as the war in Iran disrupts Middle East flows.

The narrowing European margin effectively shows that these plants would be running at a loss, and is likely to prompt some to process less crude into fuels, analysts said.

Simpler European refineries, which lack upgrading units to extract more higher-value products such as jet fuel, could be forced to trim runs if margins remain under pressure, though there is no sign of widespread cuts yet, trading sources said.

"As things stand, Europe is going to cut utilization," Sparta Commodities analyst Neil Crosby said, adding that runs could fall by as much as 500,000 barrels per day.

Asian competition for crude drives up prices. By contrast, in the U.S. Gulf, heavy sour coking margins strengthened last week compared with the March average, IEA data showed. In Singapore, similarly, medium sour cracking margins were also stronger last week than their March averages.

The squeeze in Europe reflects rising crude costs as Asian refiners compete aggressively for cargoes, several trading sources said, as well as higher operating costs such as for electricity and natural gas.

"It's typical of these crises," said a trading source at a European refinery. "Fuel cracks rise first, but as crude and other costs adjust, margins get dented." He added that their margin dropped from about $30 a barrel in the first week of the conflict to just over $4 currently.

The squeeze comes after margins globally soared in March, with those in Europe reaching record highs.

In Singapore, the IEA said, margins in March were some 14-fold higher than February levels, while in northwest Europe light sweet hydroskimming margins in March were more than nine times higher than in February at $15.20 a barrel.

Some refiners even delayed planned shutdowns to take advantage of the higher fuel prices.

Italy's 300,000 barrel per day Sarroch refinery, for instance, pushed a maintenance shutdown from late March to mid-May, industry monitor IIR said. The refinery's operator, Vitol, declined to comment.

https://www.hydrocarbonprocessing.com/news/2026/04/european-oil-refining-margins-turn-negative-bucking-global-trend/

Hard to believe greed would just skip over an entire region.

AFAIK no one has been affected in EU during this round. Last time it took about 1-2 months for layoffs to arrive there, so I would expect end of this month or end of May. Does someone have any intel? Or has someone in EU been affected already? I would not count on this round being over already.

Does anyone else think with the price of oil being pegged above $100 a barrel for the foreseeable future, ongoing bo----g campaigns of oil infrastructure, and Europe already rationing oil / encouraging as little travel as possible that we might see a softening on the four day RTO?

Wasting gas to drive into the office to call into a remote meeting doesn't make any sense.

Any information about layoffs for ADE'S in Business Network in Europe?

So all the sales team in nl just got let go on Friday.
This is after months of delay with works council…
Anyway; vz is existing nl. One of their major European hubs of VzB..

Checking in on the global RTO rollout: I’d love to hear from colleagues in the UK and EU offices. Has your local leadership confirmed a specific Phase 2 start date yet or are local labor regulations still being navigated? It would be great to compare notes on how the transition is being handled outside the US hubs.

Manufacturing PMIs in Europe start expanding and workforce is being cut - great move Wi--y...
Who could have thought that a former retiree CEO only has short term interest in the stock price/his options package and a majority external sourced execs board just bows - great vision for our 3M !

Yes, I know it's been a year and change but it's pointless for some of us. I get the RTO for certain teams I suppose but for those who are on teams/orgs that are literally GLOBAL it makes zero sense.

I drive an hour to work daily only to "collaborate" IN PERSON, with ONE person whom lives 15 mins from the office. What do we collaborate on, you ask? Absolutely fkn nothing! Unless you count gossip, and bi--hing about Dell as collaborating, anyways...

Oh but then, we have to join VIRTUAL meetings because 99% of the team is... remote or in fkn Europe, or other parts of the USA!

I just love driving 320 miles/week and tolls to go sit next to a coworker for 10 hours/week, though. If I know he's not going in or is on PTO, I don't go in. At the very minimum I make the drive and coffee badge because f that bs. I get every bit as much work done at home while playing video games all day than I do sitting in the office watching netflix on my phone.

It's happening this week across Europe. Mainly sales. And the world is this is round 1.

Updates anyone?

Last week Verizon held a meeting with employee representatives of the European Works Council
Does anyone have any information about what was discussed?
So far no details have been released about what happened

in one of Verizon’s big European countries today they operate in today they announced establishment of Employee form. Interesting cuts are coming by the sounds of that.

Anyone has more information ?

Buried in the PowerPoint today, 1.3B for restructuring charges including layoffs. Coming soon to Europe and Detroit!

“Ford Motor Co. and China’s Geely Auto are in discussions about a potential partnership, eight people with knowledge of the ongoing talks said, as the world's carmakers look to share heavier technology and manufacturing costs.”

So, the Chinese can do better in Europe than Ford ever did. Not winning…

Yesterday IBM has announced RA in Europe for 2026

Does Europe still have EV mandate in place? Does Ford still need an EV majority vehicle lineup for the EU marketplace?
Obviously F150 lightening is not a big influence there, but smaller vehicles dominate the lineup.

Will EU governments prefer hybrids, are EU govt better suited to install EV charging infrastructure

https://x.com/The_TUC/status/2008145671535116525

https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/dec/23/us-bars-five-europeans-says-pressured-tech-firms-censor-american/

From what I see, Juniper’s leadership team looks sharper than HPE’s. Antonio hasn’t really stood out to me. HPE has more women in senior roles and quite a few European executives, it almost feels like a European company.

http://techrights.org/n/2025/12/12/IBM_Layoffs_in_Europe_as_Well.shtml

It seems that there was a meeting yesterday between European Human Resources and the unions.
I imagine that the layoffs were discussed. Do you know if they have been announced in certain countries?
I haven't received any feedback in Austria.
Has anyone heard anything?

Talked to one of my buddies from the MCI days in Europe…everywhere else got hit badly with layoffs but nothing happened there. Must be a reason for that …

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/eu-approves-450m-czech-support-100157348.html

As part of the cost savings, the layoffs are currently happening and some will commence next year.

After SA operations shutdown more EU subsidiaries (Cyprus, Greece, Ireland) will shutdown their operations as company management cares about their bonuses and their own interests.
Any thoughts on this?