After Amazon and Meta, Cisco starts laying off 4,000 employees
The tech layoff season is in full swing. Now, Cisco has joined the list of companies that have laid off its employees amid a sluggish economic environment. The networking major is laying off 5% of its entire workforce, or over 4,000 employees. Last month, the company had announced its plan to cut jobs to "rebalance" its business units.
Why does this story matter?
Amazon, Meta, Snap, Twitter, Microsoft...these are some of the biggest names in the tech world that cut their workforce. Now, we can add Cisco to the list. We have been expecting Cisco to fire people since last month. With the threat of recession more present than ever, restructuring or rebalancing is important for companies to get through the tough period ahead.
Many employees have received notices about getting laid off
Cisco has begun laying off employees as part of restructuring its business. A company spokesperson told TechWire that the restructuring will affect its real estate portfolio and 5% of employees. Many have posted on the layoff discussion forum TheLayoff.com, saying they have received official notices about their jobs being cut. The $600 million restructuring plan will affect over 4,000 employees.
The company confirmed its plan to 'right-size' business units
Last month, Chuck Robbins, Cisco CEO, confirmed the company's plan to"right-size" some of its business units. The company, however, said that the layoffs aren't part of reducing the workforce. Cisco spokesperson Robyn Blum said, "This is not about reducing workforce - in fact, we'll have roughly the same number of employees at the end of this fiscal year as we had when we started."
Employees from different countries are being fired
Cisco employees were seen on Blind and TheLayoff.com talking about the layoffs. The company is yet to say anything about those impacted by job cuts. The company's Research Triangle Park campus, where it employs thousands of workers, is among those affected by layoff notifications. The campus's support staff has received layoff notifications, said one post. Employees in other countries, including India, are also impacted.
Affected employees will be placed in open roles if possible
Cisco said that it will help employees in any way possible. "We will do everything we can to help place affected employees in these open roles," said Blum last month. "This decision was not taken lightly, and we will do all we can to offer support to those impacted, including generous severance packages, job placement services, and other benefits wherever possible," she added.
