Acer to cut 300 jobs as board agrees to pay cut

The company expects to save £18.3m annually

PC manufacturer Acer has announced a series of austerity measures, including the axing of about 300 jobs from its Europe, Middle East and Africa operations, following poor Q1 results.

"Taking prompt action to meet the market change and to face challenges ahead, Acer hopes that by lowering operation expense, the company can sooner get business back to the right track for growth," the company said in a statement.

Acer has estimated that it will be hit with about £18.3m worth of compensation, but it should be able to reduce operating expenses by the same amount annually.

This news comes shortly after Acer revealed that its first quarter revenues from PC sales fell short of expectations, due to weak demand in Western Europe and the US.

Its PC revenues declined by 10 per cent from the previous quarter.

This week Acer's board has also agreed to take a voluntary 50 per cent remuneration cut, and will be proposing to shareholders that the employee bonus for 2010 be cut by 40 per cent.