SAP Mulls Moving Jobs To Eastern Europe

Corporate management software giant SAP is considering a plan to move hundreds of administrative posts at its corporate headquarters in Walldorf, Germany, to Eastern Europe. According to a report published by the financial magazine Wirtschaftswoche, SAP CEO Henning Kagermann wants to make the move in order to cut costs. Most of the shifts would be in the personnel, finance and administration divisions. Worldwide, the company employs 3,000 people in those divisions and more than 2,000 in Walldorf. The local chapter of the IG Metall trade union said it fears that up to 1,300 Germany-based jobs could be threatened. However, an SAP spokesperson told wire service AP that no decision had been made. According to an internal presentation cited by Wirtschaftswoche, the company is considering Prague, Budapest and Bratislava as possible locations for the new "Shared Services Center" administrative facility.