Global credit card and travel services major American Express said on Tuesday that India was not the main focus of its restructuring and the management would offer full support to aid the transition of those who have been handed out pink slips by the company.When asked if Amex had retrenched 25 more employees in India, a company spokesperson said, "The number of employees impacted is far below 100" and that no further layoff has been done from what was announced on Monday.The company said on Monday that India job cuts, which are a part of Amex's plans to slash its global workforce by about 7,000 people, affected less than 100 employees.A source familiar with the development said that the job losses in Amex India are less than 1-1.5 per cent of the total workforce it has in its credit card and back-office divisionsWhen contacted, Vibha Bajaj, Director (Public Affairs and Communications) said that the displaced persons were being given some compensation."Yes, people who are displaced will receive full severance, outplacement assistance and other support to aid their transition," Bajaj said but she did not spell out the details of the severance package. "We can tell you that India is not the main focus of restructuring," Bajaj emphasised.Sources, however, indicated that the severance package is in accordance with the number of years that the employee has put in with the company before being given the pink slip and said the package is "market-competitive".Last week, American Express announced plans to shed 7,000 employees, about 10 per cent of its global workforce, to cut its costs by USD 1.8 billion in 2009, through measures like "reducing staffing levels and compensation expenses, cutting operating costs and scaling back investment spending."
