Unilever has acknowledged it will cut fewer jobs than previously anticipated in Europe, with some roles to move to its ice-cream business. The prospect of job losses emerged in March as the FMCG giant announced a wave of cuts alongside a plan to spin off its ice-cream operations into a separate entity.

About 1,000 Unilever Plc staff will keep their jobs by switching to the consumer goods company’s ice cream unit, a body representing its European workers said.

Unilever is cutting about 1,500 fewer jobs in Europe than initially anticipated and hiring about 1,000 people, primarily those affected by its cost-cutting drive, for its soon-to-be spun off ice cream business,

UEWC Chairman, Hermann Soggeberg, told Reuters exclusively on Friday that the company had, however, reached a deal in October with Unilever that would see a reduction of about 1,700 jobs having initially anticipated about 3,200 job losses in Europe.

Unilever said earlier this year it would axe 7,500 jobs globally as part of a restructuring to save about 800 million euros