Samsung Elec plans global job cuts of up to 30% in some divisions, sources say
Repeats story filed on Sept 11 with no changes
By Seunggyu Lim and Aditya Kalra
SEOUL/NEW DELHI, Sept 11 (Reuters) -Samsung Electronics 005930.KS, the world's top maker of smartphones, TVs and memory chips, is cutting up to 30% of its overseas staff at some divisions, three sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
South Korea-based Samsung has instructed subsidiaries worldwide to reduce sales and marketing staff by about 15% and the administrative staff by up to 30%, two of the sources said.
The plan will be implemented by the end of this year and would impact jobs across the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa, one person said. Six other people familiar with the matter also confirmed Samsung's planned global headcount reduction.
It is not clear how many people would be let go and which countries and business units would be most affected.
The sources declined to be named because the scope and details of the job cuts remained confidential.
In a statement, Samsung said workforce adjustments conducted at some overseas operations were routine, and aimed at improving efficiency. It said there are no specific targets for the plans, adding that they are not impacting its production staff.
Samsung employed a total of 267,800 people as of the end of 2023, and more than half, or 147,000 employees, are based overseas, according to its latest sustainability report.
Manufacturing and development accounted for most of those jobs and sales and marketing staff was around 25,100, while 27,800 people worked in other areas, the report said.
The "global mandate" on job cuts was sent about three weeks ago, and Samsung's India operation was already offering severance packages to some mid-level employees who have left in recent weeks, one of the direct sources said.
The total employees who may need to leave the India unit could reach 1,000, the person added. Samsung employs some 25,000 people in India.
In China, Samsung has notified its staff about the job cuts that are expected to affect about 30% of its employees at its sales operation, a South Korean newspaper reported this month.
BIG CHALLENGES
The job cuts come as Samsung grapples with mounting pressure on its key units.
Its bread-and-butter chip business has been slower than its rivals in recovering from a severe downturn in the industry that drove its profit to a 15-year low last year.
In May, Samsung replaced the head of its semiconductor division in a bid to overcome a "chip crisis" as it seeks to catch up with smaller rival SK Hynix 000660.KS in supplying high-end memory chips used in artificial intelligence chipsets.
In the premium smartphone market, Samsung is facing stiff competition from Apple AAPL.O and China's Huawei HWT.UL, while it has long lagged behind TSMC 2330.TW in contract chip manufacturing. And in India, which earns Samsung around $12 billion in annual revenue, a strike over wages is disrupting production.
One of the sources familiar with the plans said the job cuts were being made in preparation for a slowdown in global demand for technology products as the global economy slows. Another source said Samsung is seeking to shore up its bottom line by saving costs.
It was not immediately clear if Samsung will also cut jobs in its headquarters South Korea.
One of the sources said Samsung would find it difficult to lay off workers in South Korea because it was a politically sensitive issue. Conglomerate Samsung Group SAGR.UL, of which the electronics giant is the crown jewel, is the country's biggest employer and plays a key role in its economy.
Job cuts could also stir labour unrest at home. A South Korean workers' union at Samsung Electronics recently went on strike for several days, demanding higher wages and benefits.
Shares in Samsung Electronics, South Korea's most valuable stock, are trading at their lowest level in 16 months on Wednesday, as some analysts cut their profit estimates for the company recently, citing a weak recovery in demand for smartphones and personal computers.
Reporting by Seungkyu Lim, Cynthia Kim, Hyunjoo Jin, Heekyong Yang in Seoul, Aditya Karla and Munsif Vengattil in Mumbai, Krystal Hu in New York; Editing by Miyoung Kim and Miral Fahmy
免責聲明: XM Group提供線上交易平台的登入和執行服務，允許個人查看和/或使用網站所提供的內容，但不進行任何更改或擴展其服務和訪問權限，並受以下條款與條例約束：（i）條款與條例；（ii）風險提示；（iii）完全免責聲明。網站內部所提供的所有資訊，僅限於一般資訊用途。請注意，我們所有的線上交易平台內容並不構成，也不被視為進入金融市場交易的邀約或邀請 。金融市場交易會對您的投資帶來重大風險。
所有缐上交易平台所發佈的資料，僅適用於教育/資訊類用途，不包含也不應被視爲適用於金融、投資稅或交易相關諮詢和建議，或是交易價格紀錄，或是任何金融商品或非應邀途徑的金融相關優惠的交易邀約或邀請。
本網站的所有XM和第三方所提供的内容，包括意見、新聞、研究、分析、價格其他資訊和第三方網站鏈接，皆爲‘按原狀’，並作爲一般市場評論所提供，而非投資建議。請理解和接受，所有被歸類為投資研究範圍的相關内容，並非爲了促進投資研究獨立性，而根據法律要求所編寫，而是被視爲符合營銷傳播相關法律與法規所編寫的内容。請確保您已詳讀並完全理解我們的非獨立投資研究提示和風險提示資訊，相關詳情請點擊 這裡查看。
