Axe falling at Astra-Zeneca in Delaware

Pharmaceutical giant Astra-Zeneca is cutting about 400 jobs at its North American headquarters in Wilmington.  

A small portion of the cuts will be jobs that are currently vacant, and some will come from other AZ locations around the country.  Astra-Zeneca employs more than 3,000 people in Delaware.

The job cuts come little more than a year after the company announced bigger job cuts last year.  In early 2010, company officials announced plans to eliminate 3,500 research and development positions globablly.  More than 500 of those cuts were targeted for the Wilmington facility.

Senator Tom Carper (D- Delaware) issued a statement in response to the planned cuts, citing his efforts to convince the company to build its North American headquarters in the First State.  “The news of these layoffs is particularly saddening. My thoughts are with the employees and their families, who are negatively impacted by AstraZeneca’s decision, and I will be doing everything in my power to help these employees get back on their feet and find new jobs in their profession.”

Carper says he also recognizes the economic challenges the comapny is facing, and says he’ll work with company leaders too.  “We have to redouble our efforts to get our economy back on track and create a nurturing environment for businesses – both large and small – to thrive.”