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Intel will cut thousands of jobs as PC market slows down

By Nithya Bose in US business news, posted October 12, 2022

Intel is preparing a major reduction in headcount this fall to save expenses.

Currently the chipmaker is grappling with a slump in the personal computer market.

Its sales and marketing unit might lose up to 20 percent of its employees which is nearly one in five jobs.

The expected layoffs come amid a steep drop in revenue, caused by plummeting demand for PCs.

Familiar sources said the company will announce the redundancies when it announces quarterly financial results on October 27.

Intel employs around 114,000 people across the business and is the state's largest corporate employer, serving as a pillar for the regional economy.

The risk of layoffs is a surprising reversal for the firm, which was suffering from a staff shortage last year due to strong demand for computer chips.

The manufacturer has initiated a development boom, with two new chip facilities under construction in Arizona and two more on the way in Ohio.

With the PC market currently in a post-pandemic downturn, Intel has put itself in a tough position by investing billions of dollars to grow its business even while sales are slipping.

As a result, cutbacks would not be unexpected, particularly in business divisions that do not generate direct income.

Currently, CEO Pat Gelsinger is set to an ambitious and expensive strategy to restore Intel's manufacturing and technical expertise.

Major layoffs in its manufacturing and research groups are less likely in this situation.

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That gamble could still pay off if the Santa Clara firm can deliver on the succession of microprocessor upgrades it has promised.

However, with sales collapsing and the global economy on the brink of recession, the firm may be in for a rough stretch even if Gelsinger's recovery strategy is successful.

It slashed 13,000 people in two major layoff cycles in 2015 and 2016 as the company restructured in preparation for a long-term downturn in its PC division.

Those cuts were a terrible cultural moment for the leading chipmaker, leaving residual animosity and hostility as former CEO Brian Krzanich tried to rebuild the business.

Source: Oregon Live

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