KBL which manufactures clear alcoholic beverages employs 545 workers while the opaque beer brewer, BBL has 425 staff. Due to changes in the business environment, mainly the pressures on sales of alcoholic beverages induced by the alcohol levy, the management of the two brewing firms last week announced an amalgamation process that will see them coming together as a single operating entity.
Group managing director, Hloni Matsela has told Mmegi Business that while the ideal situation would be to minimise job loses, in some situations, this would be unavoidable as the brewers seek to reduce duplications by streamlining operations. "We will endeavour to minimise having employee redundancies, make provisions to ensure that as many as possible have a role to play in the integrated organisation and that this process does not disadvantage any of our employees. Whilst this is the ideal, engagement with employees is on-going with all efforts being made to avoid job losses as employees will be assimilated into the new company," he explained.
