Ericsson lays off 1,200 staff

Ericsson is laying off 1,200 workers in its information technology units.

It says the need for workers to support computer networks has reduced as the overall organization has shrunk.

It explains that it has shrunk from 107,000 employees to roughly 64,000 workers so sends fewer e-mails and so needs fewer people to service servers.

About 700 workers will be laid off in Sweden and 500 in other countries.

Ericsson, the world's largest maker of equipment for wireless networks, is struggling to return to profitability after two years of losses.

Last week it said chief executive officer Kurt Hellstroem would retire in April and be replaced by Carl-Henric Svanberg, the chief executive officer of international lock maker Assa Abloy.