Bovis to axe 40 staff after review of market prospects

Bovis Lend Lease is set to make up to 40 staff redundant after a review of resources and markets.
The news came as it emerged this week that cost consultant EC Harris was shutting its Glasgow office because of cancelled projects in the city.
A Bovis Lend Lease spokesperson said the job cuts were a result of the company’s decision to focus on its core markets of defence, health, commercial and retail.
The spokesperson said: “Bovis Lend Lease is reviewing its allocation of resources in the company and this could lead to a modest number of job losses. We will be consulting with the employees affected.”
The spokesperson added that the job losses were unlikely to exceed 40. He added that the outlook for Bovis Lend Lease remained positive, with continued growth across the region.
QS EC Harris is likely to cut about 25 jobs in Scotland and at its office in Warsaw. The Glasgow office will in effect close, although a skeleton staff will remain in the city.
EC Harris said it hopes to transfer between 10 and 12 staff to Edinburgh or to other offices that have vacancies. It is thought that some staff may be unable to move because of family commitments, and that these people will be given the option of redundancy.
The Warsaw office will be reduced from 45 to 30 staff after a downturn that started eight to nine months ago.
EC Harris hopes to relocate those 15 employees.
Philip Youell, a partner at EC Harris, said: “The markets in Poland and Scotland are tightening. The key issue for us is the transfer of people rather than redundancies.”

International architect Swanke Hayden Connell made 11 staff redundant at its London office last month. It now has fewer than 90 employees.
Principal Bob Fry said: “Unfortunately, looking at the forward project workload, we could not keep an office of that size going. We are trying to be optimistic [about the market].”
Architect Pringle Brandon has also made two redundancies in the past month.