By Juliet Umeh (with agency reports)
Samsung Electronics, a global leader in smartphones, TVs, and memory chips, is planning significant staff reductions, cutting up to 30 per cent of its overseas workforce in some divisions, according to three sources with direct knowledge of the situation.
“The South Korea-based company has reportedly instructed its subsidiaries worldwide to reduce sales and marketing staff by around 15 per cent, with administrative roles facing cuts of up to 30 per cent, according to two of the sources.
These changes are expected to take effect by the end of the year, impacting jobs across the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa, one person said.
Six additional sources also confirmed Samsung’s global headcount reduction plans.
Details on the exact number of layoffs or the specific countries and business units affected remain unclear, as the sources requested anonymity, citing the sensitive nature of the plans.
However, in a statement, Samsung described these workforce adjustments as routine measures to improve efficiency, emphasizing that no specific targets had been set and that production staff would not be affected.“
As of the end of 2023, Samsung employed a total of 267,800 people, with more than half—around 147,000—working overseas, according to its latest sustainability report. The majority of these jobs are in manufacturing and development, with approximately 25,100 in sales and marketing, and 27,800 in other departments.
A “global mandate” on job cuts was issued about three weeks ago. Samsung’s India operations have already begun offering severance packages to some mid-level employees, with up to 1,000 employees potentially affected, one of the direct sources noted. Samsung employs about 25,000 people in India.“
In China, Samsung has informed employees that its sales operations could see up to 30% of staff cut, as reported by a South Korean newspaper earlier this month.
