Property broker DTZ has announced plans to lay off around 50, or 2.5%, of its UK staff as part of a strategic review carried out in response to the downturn in the British property market. The firm said that 'less than 50 people will be affected by the review, out of a total UK staff of 2,000', adding that efforts are being made to redeploy as many redundant employees as possible in other European markets.
Property broker DTZ has announced plans to lay off around 50, or 2.5%, of its UK staff as part of a strategic review carried out in response to the downturn in the British property market. The firm said that 'less than 50 people will be affected by the review, out of a total UK staff of 2,000', adding that efforts are being made to redeploy as many redundant employees as possible in other European markets.
'To ensure we keep in line with market conditions, we have been redeploying and refocusing our organisation in the UK. Consultation is under way to establish the extent to which the people in these posts can be redeployed, minimising need for abandonment,' DTZ said in a statement. 'The difficult decisions taken now will enable us to come out of the downturn with a stronger position,' it added.
The economic growth rate in the UK is expected to slow in the next two years as the result of a drop of about 10% in property prices, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The body warned at the beginning of June that the slump in the real estate sector will make the country's economy more vulnerable to the global credit crisis, reducing economic growth to 1.8% this year and around 1.4% in 2009.
Separately, DTZ said on Thursday that it has expanded its property management division in Edinburgh from four to 12 employees over the last few months on the back of new business wins such as City Park in Glasgow and the reappointment of DTZ by Dutch insurance giant Aegon.
