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In February 2007, the Serious Fraud Office in the UK launched an investigation into allegations of AstraZeneca being involved in the discredited oil-for-food sanctions regime in Iraq. They are accused of paying bribes to Saddam Hussein's regime. <ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,2012485,00.html Guardian Unlimited February 14, 2007]</ref>
In February 2007, the Serious Fraud Office in the UK launched an investigation into allegations of AstraZeneca being involved in the discredited oil-for-food sanctions regime in Iraq. They are accused of paying bribes to Saddam Hussein's regime. <ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,2012485,00.html Guardian Unlimited February 14, 2007]</ref>

==Controversy==
Confronted by [[allegation]]s in a May 13 [[Business Week]] [[cover story]]{{ref|CEOabuse}},{{ref|CEOabuse2}} of widespread [[sexual harassment]] and other [[abuse]]s at its Astra USA Inc. subsidiary, the company [[suspension|suspended]] three top [[executive]]s and launched an internal [[Investigation|probe]].{{ref|fireCEO}}

On June 26, the parent company announced that it had [[fired]] Astra USA [[President]] and [[CEO]] [[Lars Bildman]] without [[severance pay]]. [[Carl-Gustav Johansson]], an Astra executive [[vice-president]], says the [[investigation]] found that Bildman had "exhibited inappropriate [[behavior]] at [[company functions]]" and had "abused his [[power]]." He was also accused of [[misappropriation]] of [[funds]], diverting them for personal [[expenses]] such as "lavish [[trip]]s" and "extensive [[renovations]] for his home." Another suspended executive, [[George Roadman]], was also fired, while a third, [[Edward Aarons]], [[resign]]ed. A senior executive in Sweden, [[Anders Lonner]], was asked to resign for failing to report the [[misconduct]] to [[superior]]s, Astra says.

Astra USA agreed to pay $9.85 million to settle a [[Lawsuit|suit]] brought by at least 79 women and one man against the company. The suit [[accusation|accused]] Astra's former president and other executives of pressuring female employees for [[sex]] and replacing older workers with younger, more attractive women. It was the biggest sexual harassment [[settlement]] ever obtained by the United States [[Equal Employment Opportunity Commission]].{{ref|Suit}}

Astra USA admitted that it allowed a [[Hostility|hostile]] environment—including requests for sexual [[favor]]s, replacing older female employees with younger women, and pressuring women into having [[sex]]. Bildman reportedly demanded that "eight hours of work be followed by eight hours of [[drink]]ing and [[party]]ing." In addition to firing Bildman and other top officials, Astra USA agreed to a sexual harassment [[policy]] and took action against 30 employees and Astra [[customer]]s who had taken part in the [[harassment]]. Current USA CEO, [[Ivan Rowley]] apologized:

{{cquote|As a company, we are ashamed of the unacceptable [[behavior]] that took place. … To each person that has been harmed and who has suffered because of that behavior, I offer our [[Apology|apologies]].}}

On February 4, 1998, Astra USA sued Bildman, seeking $15 million for [[Fraud|defrauding]] the [[company]]. The sum included $2.3 million in company funds he allegedly used to fix up three of his homes, plus money the company paid as the result of the EEOC investigation. Astra's lawsuit alleged Bildman sexually harassed and intimidated employees, used company funds for [[yacht]]s and [[Prostitution|prostitutes]], destroyed [[document]]s and [[record]]s, and concocted "tales of [[conspiracy]] involving ex-[[KGB]] [[agent]]s and [[competitor]]s … in a last-ditch effort to distract attention from the real wrongdoer, Bildman himself." Bildman had already [[plead guilty]] in [[U.S. District Court]] for failing to report more than $1 million in income on his [[tax return]]s; in addition, several female co-workers filed personal sexual-harassment lawsuits.{{ref|sueCEO}}


==See also==
==See also==
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# {{note|WorkingMother}} [http://www.workingmother.com/astrazeneca.html AstraZeneca Profile]. Verified availability [[February 3]] [[2006]].
# {{note|WorkingMother}} [http://www.workingmother.com/astrazeneca.html AstraZeneca Profile]. Verified availability [[February 3]] [[2006]].
# {{note|NexiumDisNYT}} Gladwell, Malcolm ([[October 25]] [[2004]]). "[http://www.newyorker.com/critics/atlarge/?041025crat_atlarge High Prices: How to think about prescription drugs]". ''[[The New Yorker]]''. Verified availability [[March 1]] [[2007]].
# {{note|NexiumDisNYT}} Gladwell, Malcolm ([[October 25]] [[2004]]). "[http://www.newyorker.com/critics/atlarge/?041025crat_atlarge High Prices: How to think about prescription drugs]". ''[[The New Yorker]]''. Verified availability [[March 1]] [[2007]].
# {{note|CEOabuse}} Maremont, Mark and Sasseen, Jane (May 13, 1996). "[http://www.businessweek.com/1996/20/b34751.htm Abuse of Power: Part I]" ''[[Business Week]],'' New York. Verified availability March 6, 2007.
# {{note|CEOabuse2}} Maremont, Mark and Sasseen, Jane (May 13, 1996). "[http://www.businessweek.com/1996/20/b34752.htm Abuse of Power: Part II]" ''[[Business Week]],'' New York. Verified availability March 6, 2007.
# {{note|Suit}} [[The Associated Press]], (February 6, 1998). "[http://www.ucsf.edu/oshpr/library/drug.html Drug Firm to Pay Record $9.85 million]" ''[[San Francisco Chronicle]].'' Verified availability March 6, 2007.
# {{note|fireCEO}} Maremont, Mark (July 8, 1996). "[http://www.businessweek.com/1996/28/b348355.htm Day of Reckoning at Astra]" ''[[Business Week]],'' Westborough, Mass. Verified availability March 6, 2007.
# {{note|sueCEO}} Smith, Geoffrey (February 4, 1998). "[http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/feb1998/nf80204e.htm Astra Hauls ex-CEO Lars Bildman into Court]" ''[[Business Week]],'' [[Boston]]. Verified availability March 6, 2007.


===Notes===
===Notes===

Revision as of 19:10, 6 March 2007

AstraZeneca PLC
Company typePublic (LSE: AZN, NYSE: AZN) and OMX: AZN
IndustryPharmaceutical
Founded6 April 1999 by merger
HeadquartersCorporate HQ in London, England
R&D HQ in Södertälje, Sweden
NorthAmerica HQ in Wilmington, DE
Key people
David Brennan CEO
Louis Schweitzer Chairman
Jonathan Symonds CFO
John Patterson Director, Drug Development
Jan Lundberg Exec. VP, Discovery Research
ProductsPharmaceutical products for humans
Revenue$23.95 billion (2005)
$6.5 billion (2005)
1,227,000,000 United States dollar (2019) Edit this on Wikidata
Total assets61,377,000,000 United States dollar (2019) Edit this on Wikidata
Number of employees
>65,000 (2005)
Websitewww.astrazeneca.com

AstraZeneca PLC[1] (LSE: AZN, NYSE: AZN), is a large Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical company formed on 6 April 1999 by the merger of Swedish Astra AB and British Zeneca Group. AstraZeneca develops, manufactures, and sells pharmaceuticals to treat disorders in the gastrointestinal, cardiac and vascular, neurological and psychiatric, infection, respiratory, pathological inflammation and oncology areas.

Sales in 2005 totalled $23.95 billion, with a profit before tax of $6.5 billion. Total R&D spending was $3.4 billion. The corporate headquarters are in London, UK, the research and development (R&D) headquarters are in Södertälje, Sweden. Major R&D centres are located on three continents in the United States, United Kingdom, Sweden, and India.

The current chief executive of AstraZeneca is David Brennan.[2] He replaced Sir Tom McKillop on January 1 2006.

Corporate structure

Current members of the board of directors of AstraZeneca are: Peter Bonfield, David Brennan, John Buchanan, Jane E. Henney, Michele Hooper, Joe Jimenez, Håkan Mogren, Erna Möller, Professor Dame Nancy Rothwell, John Varley, John Patterson, Louis Schweitzer, Jonathan Symonds, and Marcus Wallenberg.

Merger and acquisition activity

AstraZeneca has, following a collaborative relationship begun in 2004,[1] commenced the acquisition of Cambridge Antibody Technology (CAT).[2] The company is currently in the final stages of exercising compulsory acquisition options against outstanding CAT shares.[3]

Collaborations and alliances

Diversity

In the US, AstraZeneca is one of the 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers in 2004 according to Working Mothers magazine.[3]

AstraZeneca and Breast Cancer

AstraZeneca is the major sponsor for Breast Cancer Awareness Month which focuses on early detection and treatment[4]. AstraZeneca is also a leading producer of breast cancer treatment drugs like Tamoxifen and Arimidex

Major products

AstraZeneca specialises in prescription medicines to fight disease in the several therapeutic areas. Year-on sales information can be found through AstraZeneca annual reports. The following is a list of key products as found on the AstraZeneca website, retrieved 2005-03-27.

Criticism

In February 2007, the Serious Fraud Office in the UK launched an investigation into allegations of AstraZeneca being involved in the discredited oil-for-food sanctions regime in Iraq. They are accused of paying bribes to Saddam Hussein's regime. [10]

Controversy

Confronted by allegations in a May 13 Business Week cover story[5],[6] of widespread sexual harassment and other abuses at its Astra USA Inc. subsidiary, the company suspended three top executives and launched an internal probe.[7]

On June 26, the parent company announced that it had fired Astra USA President and CEO Lars Bildman without severance pay. Carl-Gustav Johansson, an Astra executive vice-president, says the investigation found that Bildman had "exhibited inappropriate behavior at company functions" and had "abused his power." He was also accused of misappropriation of funds, diverting them for personal expenses such as "lavish trips" and "extensive renovations for his home." Another suspended executive, George Roadman, was also fired, while a third, Edward Aarons, resigned. A senior executive in Sweden, Anders Lonner, was asked to resign for failing to report the misconduct to superiors, Astra says.

Astra USA agreed to pay $9.85 million to settle a suit brought by at least 79 women and one man against the company. The suit accused Astra's former president and other executives of pressuring female employees for sex and replacing older workers with younger, more attractive women. It was the biggest sexual harassment settlement ever obtained by the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.[8]

Astra USA admitted that it allowed a hostile environment—including requests for sexual favors, replacing older female employees with younger women, and pressuring women into having sex. Bildman reportedly demanded that "eight hours of work be followed by eight hours of drinking and partying." In addition to firing Bildman and other top officials, Astra USA agreed to a sexual harassment policy and took action against 30 employees and Astra customers who had taken part in the harassment. Current USA CEO, Ivan Rowley apologized:

As a company, we are ashamed of the unacceptable behavior that took place. … To each person that has been harmed and who has suffered because of that behavior, I offer our apologies.

On February 4, 1998, Astra USA sued Bildman, seeking $15 million for defrauding the company. The sum included $2.3 million in company funds he allegedly used to fix up three of his homes, plus money the company paid as the result of the EEOC investigation. Astra's lawsuit alleged Bildman sexually harassed and intimidated employees, used company funds for yachts and prostitutes, destroyed documents and records, and concocted "tales of conspiracy involving ex-KGB agents and competitors … in a last-ditch effort to distract attention from the real wrongdoer, Bildman himself." Bildman had already plead guilty in U.S. District Court for failing to report more than $1 million in income on his tax returns; in addition, several female co-workers filed personal sexual-harassment lawsuits.[9]

See also

References

  1. ^ standard practice is that the name be pronounced as "Astra Zeneca" rather than "Astrazeneca".
  2. ^ AstraZeneca PLC (July 28 2005). The Board of AstraZeneca PLC announces the appointment of David R Brennan as Chief Executive with effect from 1 January 2006 upon the retirement at that time of Sir Tom McKillop. Press release.
  3. ^ AstraZeneca Profile. Verified availability February 3 2006.
  4. ^ Gladwell, Malcolm (October 25 2004). "High Prices: How to think about prescription drugs". The New Yorker. Verified availability March 1 2007.
  5. ^ Maremont, Mark and Sasseen, Jane (May 13, 1996). "Abuse of Power: Part I" Business Week, New York. Verified availability March 6, 2007.
  6. ^ Maremont, Mark and Sasseen, Jane (May 13, 1996). "Abuse of Power: Part II" Business Week, New York. Verified availability March 6, 2007.
  7. ^ The Associated Press, (February 6, 1998). "Drug Firm to Pay Record $9.85 million" San Francisco Chronicle. Verified availability March 6, 2007.
  8. ^ Maremont, Mark (July 8, 1996). "Day of Reckoning at Astra" Business Week, Westborough, Mass. Verified availability March 6, 2007.
  9. ^ Smith, Geoffrey (February 4, 1998). "Astra Hauls ex-CEO Lars Bildman into Court" Business Week, Boston. Verified availability March 6, 2007.

Notes

  1. ^ Press release, 22 November 2004
  2. ^ May 15, 2006 MarketWatch report
  3. ^ Press release, 7 July 2006
  4. ^ Press Release 11 January 2007
  5. ^ Press release, 5 July 2006
  6. ^ Press release, 27 July 2005
  7. ^ Press release, 11 July 2005
  8. ^ "Pennsylvania Bio - Member Listings". Pennsylvania Bio web site. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ Press release, 27 July 2005
  10. ^ Guardian Unlimited February 14, 2007
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