Rogers and Hadid to cut jobs

Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners, Zaha Hadid Architects and Gehry Partners have all revealed redundancies this week.

Rogers announced plans to make 35 of his 160 staff redundant on Monday, while Frank Gehry revealed to the LA Times that he has been forced to halve the number of staff working for him over the past year.

And despite claiming to have more projects on site around the world than ever, Zaha Hadid Architects confirmed on Wednesday it would “rebalance the composition of its staff” by reducing the number of architectural assistants it employs.

Speaking on Monday, Rogers said: “In my long career as an architect, this is one of the saddest days. The economic downturn we are experiencing is the most ruthless and wide-ranging I can remember and it is impossible for us to be immune from its effects.”

Andrew Morris, commercial director for Rogers Stirk Harbour, said that key projects, including the Leadenhall Tower and a 45-storey tower in Elephant & Castle known as 360 London, had been stalled.

“In previous recessions, there’s been a feeling that there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. But with this one, there’s a feeling that the worst is yet to come,” he said.