According to the Zhituo Finance APP, the head of Unilever (UL.US) Europe Works Council stated that the company will lay off about 1,500 fewer employees in Europe than initially expected and has hired around 1,000 individuals primarily affected by the cost-cutting plan for its upcoming divestment of the ice cream business.

It is understood that under the leadership of CEO Hein Schumacher, the company has been working to streamline its business over the past year. The shareholder of this united kingdom company also includes billionaire activist investor and board of directors member Nelson Peltz.

Prior to his appointment, Unilever had performed poorly for years and had been criticized for allowing its brand portfolio to grow to around 400, which left management with little time to focus on the best-performing brands.

Some investors have also stated that Unilever has been too slow to restore its profit margins after the COVID-19 pandemic and needs to streamline its business.

Earlier this year, Unilever stated that as part of a restructuring plan, it will lay off 7,500 employees globally to save approximately €0.8 billion (USD 0.845 billion). The company also mentioned that it will divest its ice cream division, which includes brands like Ben & Jerry's and Magnum.

Unilever's Europe Works Council (UEWC) has strongly criticized these decisions, stating that the restructuring of the ice cream business could have been successfully carried out within Unilever.

Hermann Soggeberg, chairman of UEWC, stated on Friday that the company reached an agreement with Unilever in October to lay off about 1,700 people in europe, whereas the initial expectation was to lay off about 3,200.

"We have been in intensive negotiations with the company throughout the summer," Soggeberg said.

He pointed out that Unilever is still fulfilling its commitment to investors to cut costs, but through a savings program from 2022 to 2024, as well as a freeze on external hiring, Unilever is able to significantly reduce layoffs in europe.

Soggeberg stated that Unilever's ice cream business in europe will create about 1,000 new jobs, mainly for employees affected by the layoffs in Unilever's other businesses.

"They are planning for growth in ice cream," Soggeberg said, "and we have agreed with Unilever that the recruitment of these individuals will be synchronized with the layoff plan."

Unilever previously stated that the spinoff of its ice cream business is expected to be completed by the end of 2025, adding that it will move to a separate headquarters in Amsterdam.

Unilever did not immediately respond to requests for comments on the matter.