Ship maker PZM will lay off 700 additional employees

Polska Zegluga Morska (PZM), the country's largest ship maker, intends to lay off approximately 700 workers within the next 18 months. The decision has come as no surprise to the company's employees, as it is the latest stage in a restructuring program that began in 1998 when the Asian economic crisis led to a reduction in shipping rates. Since then, PZM has laid off more than 1,100 employees. "There are too many chief engineers, captains and stewards," said Krzysztof Gogol, PZM's press spokesman. "PZM will try to help them in getting a job with other ship makers." Meanwhile, the company is also selling unprofitable and outdated ships. (Rzeczpospolita, p. B3) A.Z.