A third of European firms are planning job cuts, according to a report published by business consultancy BCG and the European Association for People Management (EAPM).

The report shows that 57% of firms are preparing a major redundancy programme for full-time workers, compared with 40% in Russia, 38% in Austria and the Netherlands, 37% in France and Spain, and 32% in Germany.

Linda Holbeche, board member of EAPM and director of research and practice, Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development (CIPD), says: “Companies should review people strategies deployed during the last recession to avoid using interventions which have been proven over time to be ineffective.

“It’s important to recognise that a lot of managers will not have the experience of handling change of this scale, so to avoid mistakes of the past, companies must follow the good practice outlined in this report.”