Printer and photocopier maker Océ is to apply for 2,400 staff at its Venlo operations to have their working hours cut, unions said on Wednesday evening.

The main lines of the deal has been reached and Océ has agreed to top up part-time social security benefits to 100% of salary, unions told news agency ANP.
Under government recession-busting measures, companies which have been hit by the economic downturn can apply for staff hours to be cut. Workers get unemployment benefits (ww) for the hours they lose.
Pay freeze
The company has also called for a pay freeze, said the unions. They want compensation for inflation, which would mean a pay rise of some 2%.
On Thursday morning, the company announced worse than expected second quarter figures. Océ booked a net loss of €14m, some €5m higher than analysts quoted by ANP had expected.
The company blamed the poor results on further deterioration in the market.