UPDATE: Oracle To Cut Up To 1,000 European Jobs, Union Says

Oracle Corp. (ORCL) is planning to cut up to 1,000 jobs in Europe, according to a French labor union.

An Oracle spokeswoman declined to comment, and it remains unclear whether Oracle plans to make any cuts in other regions.

A post on the CFDT union's Web site said Oracle, the world's second-largest software maker, had forecast growth to be slower than expected in Europe, and that the cuts were designed to maintain the operating margin and preserve the long-term strategy of the company.

The CFDT, one of the largest unions in France, said it had expressed "surprise and anger" to Oracle over the planned cuts.

According to the union, Oracle, based in Redwood City, Calif., plans to cut between 850 and 1,000 jobs from a total of 17,000 staff in Europe. Approximately 250 positions will be lost in France, the union said, which is just over 15% of its French workforce. Oracle has around 86,000 employees in total, according to the company's Web site.

The apparent move by Oracle comes shortly after the company indicated that the business outlook in North America had improved in the fourth quarter. At its earnings call, Oracle wasn't as clear on the outlook for Europe.

Oracle in June reported that its fiscal fourth-quarter profit ending May 31 declined 7.2%, marking its first revenue decline in seven years, as the stronger dollar and continuing economic weakness weighed on revenues and earnings.

Despite declining sales and a tough technology-spending environment, Oracle has avoided large-scale job cuts, unlike peers such as Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), Adobe Systems Inc. (ADBE) and International Business Machines Corp. (IBM), all of which have announced plans to lay off thousands of workers.

Oracle, which makes databases and other business tools, recently announced it intends to buy Sun Microsystems Inc. (JAVA) for $7.4 billion.

-By Jessica Hodgson, Dow Jones Newswires; 415-439-6455; [e-mail]

(Ben Worthen contributed to this article.)