New competitors push Sanofi to offer voluntary retirement packages at two Indian sites
The French pharma giant Sanofi will be offering up voluntary retirements to workers at two of its manufacturing sites in India after it noted in a statement that new pharma manufacturers have set up shop and increased the overall supply capacity for both vaccines and drugs.
The move applies to workers at Sanofi’s sites in Medchal and Muppireddypally, India, suburbs located to the north of the city of Hyderabad.
A statement from a Sanofi India spokesperson to Endpoints News said that Sanofi has had to “adapt its strategy and portfolio” to wider global trends and that “some activities” at the Muppireddypally and Medchal sites are no longer viable.
“A Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) has been launched and is being offered to all employees of the sites on a voluntary basis only. We are fully committed to supporting our employees as we work through the details,” the Sanofi India spokesperson said.
This action will not change any commitment Sanofi has in India, the spokesperson added.
However, no details on how many employees have taken or will take the VRS have been given to Endpoints. According to Sanofi India’s website, the two sites manufacture insulins and vaccines for diseases such as cholera and polio. Sanofi also says on its website that it has over 5,000 employees in India. The sites are a part of what was formerly known as Shantha Biotechnics, which Sanofi acquired in 2009 in a multimillion-dollar deal, according to a report at the time.
