KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 22): Country Garden Real Estate Sdn Bhd (Country Garden Malaysia) said the recent integration of its organisational structure, which resulted in some job cuts, will help the company strengthen management control, improve efficiency and enhance operations.

The developer of the Forest City project in Johor said that as an organisation involved in real estate development and construction, the company requires the reshuffling of employees' job scope, and prioritises resources according to the annual business development direction and the cyclical characteristics of industry development.

“This is not a peculiar phenomenon in the real estate industry. On the contrary, it is an important measure to be taken for the long-term sustainable development of the company,” the company said in a statement today.

Country Garden Malaysia, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-listed Country Garden Holdings Co Ltd, was responding to a news report in theedgemarkets.com yesterday which said the company had laid off hundreds of staff since December 2019 as a result of the restructuring exercise.

The report, quoting a source, said nearly 400 personnel were given the option to accept a severance package and leave within 48 hours, or leave their jobs and negotiate for compensation with the company’s lawyers later.

In its statement today, Country Garden Malaysia said that  during the integration process, the company identified the need to manage overlapping skills and talents.

“The management proposed several solutions to resolve this matter while at the same time holding an utmost respect towards the legal procedures and employees' own wishes.

“Some of the talents were transferred to other departments that fit their skill sets, some were reassigned to other projects.

“For those who made the decision to leave, their service towards the organisation was recognised with a fair consolation reward with consensual understanding between both parties,” it added.

The integration, the company said, involved combining the Malaysian office managing Danga Bay, Central Park, Diamond City and Lake City-KL North, with the Forest City office.

“The newly formed ‘Malaysia-Singapore Region’ will comprise regional management, project management, real estate, sales and marketing, property management and seven subsidiaries, and will be running two top-rated hotels, two award-winning golf courses (the third one under construction), one IBS plant, one water park, one international school and multiple clubs.

“As of the time of this statement, our company has handed over more than 15,000 premier quality units, while the total service area of our property management is close to six million square metres.

“The total staff strength remains at more than 1,500, of whom 80% are Malaysians.

“With the integration, we are also carrying out the consolidation and optimisation of office equipment and assets, such as vehicle management, worksite management, etc,” it added.

Country Garden Malaysia said Forest City, as a key development project of the Malaysia-Singapore Region, will focus on building industrial capabilities.

“The infrastructure and facilities we have built over the past few years will lay a solid foundation for industries such as artificial intelligence and smart manufacturing.

“At the same time, the integrated Malaysia-Singapore Region will not only continue to do well in the existing works, but will also strive to expand the development opportunities of new projects in real estates and other related businesses, and ‘strive for progress while maintaining stability’,” it said.