Due to "poor performance," over 10,000 Intel workers will be let go without pay.
A serious setback for Intel staff! Beginning in July of this year, over 10,000 manufacturing workers will lose their jobs as the largest integrated circuit manufacturer in the world prepares for one of the biggest layoffs in its recent history. Between 15% and 20% of the employees at Intel Foundry, a business unit tasked with designing chips for businesses under contract, globally are anticipated to be impacted by this decision.
Intel will not provide voluntary retirement plans or severance packages, in contrast to past instances where mass layoffs have already occurred in many of its regions. Instead, layoffs will be carried out in accordance with strategic investment plans and performance reviews.
The cuts will impact a variety of positions, from researchers creating cutting-edge microprocessors to factory technicians, according to an internal memo made public in the last few hours.
The vice president of manufacturing at Intel, Naga Chandrasekaran, admitted that these actions are "very painful but necessary" to address the company's present financial health and economic difficulties.
The executive stated that every employee will be assessed on an individual basis according to their level, abilities, operational impact, and compatibility with the company's current projects.
This audacious action is a component of the restructuring plan implemented by Lip-Pu Tan, the new CEO who took over in March of this year. Tan declared in April that he intended to refocus on engineering and streamline the internal structure by cutting the workforce by more than 20%. At the time, the new CEO of Intel was particularly criticized for stating, "The best leaders achieve more with fewer people."
It's important to remember that Intel's workforce has already drastically decreased, going from 125,000 workers in 2023 to about 109,000 by the end of 2024. There is more pressure for additional cost adjustments after the company reported $821 million in losses in the first quarter of 2025.