Microsoft announces voluntary redundancy program for 60,000 staff
Microsoft will offer a voluntary exit package to about 60,000 employees, roughly 27% of its global workforce, as part of a broader restructuring effort.
Microsoft said it will extend a voluntary redundancy program to approximately 60,000 employees in Canada, India, the United Kingdom and the United States. Executive vice president Amy Coleman wrote in a blog post that the time-limited offer provides eligible staff with financial support and career-planning resources.
Coleman noted that participation varies by business unit, depending on priorities, customer commitments and workforce needs. The move follows an earlier early-retirement buyout offered to about 8,600 long-term employees in April, part of an ongoing restructuring driven by the company’s shift toward artificial-intelligence products.
Microsoft employed roughly 223,000 full-time workers at the end of June. The company is preparing to release its quarterly financial results later this week. Shares of the Redmond-based firm rose about 1% on Monday.
Analysts have said that rising costs for data-center infrastructure, including memory chips, processors and electricity, could keep inflationary pressures elevated through the end of the year.