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Samsung is starting to lay off staff globally, impacting up to 30% of employees in some divisions by the end of this year, according to three sources familiar with the scope of the layoffs, Reuters reports Wednesday.
Sales and marketing departments are reportedly being reduced by 15%, while up to 30% of administrative staff are expected to be laid off. Samsung has about 25,000 sales and marketing staff, according to the report, meaning over 3,700 employees may be included in the layoffs.
Half a dozen other sources confirmed the global layoffs at Samsung more broadly, which are expected to impact staff across Samsung divisions in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa. Samsung has nearly 270,000 employees globally across 76 countries, according to its website, citing data from late last year. Some staff in China and India will be losing their jobs, impacting up to 1,000 people in India alone, a source told the outlet. Samsung began notifying employees about three weeks ago.
Earlier this year, Samsung, which is headquartered in South Korea, reportedly imposed six-day workweeks for its executives to combat what it believes to be a financial "crisis" at the company. Samsung is still profitable, however, despite seeing a dramatic fall in quarterly operating profits from late 2022 until the end of 2023 and not having a great year overall last year.
Samsung reported operating profits of $4.9 billion last fiscal year, per data on its website, and saw a 900% spike in profits earlier this year in part due to chip demand spurred by a global surge in artificial intelligence development and training. In May, Samsung replaced its chief chip executive to oversee its semiconductor business and try to rebound from its financial struggles. Company stock is down about 8% in the past year, though it's still up nearly 38% in the past five years.
Samsung tells Reuters that its layoffs are routine, however, and part of its plan to become a more efficient company. Samsung has not responded to PCMag's request for comment.