Kerry Stokes’ Seven Group Holdings says WesTrac will slash 350 jobs as difficult conditions in the resources sector take their toll on the mining equipment distributor.
The job cuts will occur across WesTrac’s New South Wales and ACT operations and will cost the group around $10 million.
“WesTrac has implemented a series of efficiency and productivity initiatives over the past eight months in an effort to streamline its cost base, but these measures alone have not been sufficient in view of continuing challenging market conditions,” Seven Group said in a statement.
WesTrac’s remaining 3,500 employees in Western Australia, NSW and the ACT will be unaffected.
Seven Group, which is the largest shareholder in media conglomerate Seven West Media, also provided earnings guidance today, saying its profit would come in at the lower end of its previous forecasts of 10 to 20 per cent growth.
The group’s financial year 2012 net profit came in at $343.2 million.
At 11:45AM, WST, Seven Group shares were down almost 2 per cent, or 14 cents, at $6.99.
