Intel recently notified the State of California about its plan to reduce its workforce by 311 employees across its Santa Clara and Folsom campuses in California. This decision is part of Intel's extensive cost-reduction strategy initiated by CEO Pat Gelsinger last year, aimed at mitigating the impacts of a downturn in market demand, reports CRN. Intel has confirmed the story.
The details of these job cuts were shared in two notices to the State of California’s Employment Development Department on November 3. The layoffs will affect around 76 employees at Intel's headquarters in Santa Clara and about 235 at its Folsom site. These layoffs are scheduled to begin by the end of the year.
This isn't the first time Intel has reduced its workforce in California. The company made similar cuts back in August, letting go 89 people in Folsom and 51 in San Jose. In total, Intel eliminated almost 500 roles from the Folsom R&D campus this year alone, so with 235 more, this number will grow to over 700 people.
Intel's Folsom site has served multiple research and development purposes, such as designing SSDs, graphics processors, software, and chipsets. After Intel divested its 3D NAND and SSD division in 2021, it either relocated relevant experts to Solidigm or released them from their duties. Consequently, the company is now laying off other types of experts, including GPU software specialists, which is generally unexpected. Meanwhile, the company has not yet provided any official statements regarding the roles impacted by the latest round of cuts.
The layoffs are part of Intel's larger cost-cutting plan, which CEO Pat Gelsinger introduced over a year ago. This plan was a response to a sharp decrease in demand for Intel's products, pushing the company to rethink its operations and financial strategy. Meanwhile, demand has begun to recover since the plan's inception, but it looks like the cost-cutting measures are still in place.
"Intel is working to accelerate its strategy while reducing costs through multiple initiatives, including some business and function-specific workforce reductions in areas across the company," an Intel spokesperson told CRN.
The company reminded that it had around 13,000 employees in California and continues to invest in manufacturing in the U.S. Meanwhile, its manufacturing operations are located in other states, namely Arizona, New Mexico, and Oregon.
