Layoffs at IBM Corp. in the second quarter of this year, the period from April to June, totalled just over 15,600 people, the company disclosed Tuesday in a filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
IBM’s Global Services unit took the brunt of the hit, with 14,213 employees losing their jobs, according to the document. Fifty-seven per cent of these employees left the company at the end of June, with the rest due out by the end of September. The company also disclosed a reduction of 1,400 additional jobs at its microelectronics division, all of which will leave by the end of August.
IBM plants which were hit with layoffs included Raleigh, N.C.; Austin, Tex.; Burlington, Vt.; Endicott and East Fishkill, N.Y.; Lowell, Mass.; and Encinitas, Calif.
IBM recorded a pre-tax charge of US$767 million relating to layoffs during the quarter.
Some details of the layoffs had already been made public although Tuesday’s SEC filing represents the first time the company has officially confirmed the number of job losses.
IBM announced late last month that it would be purchasing PwC Consulting, which it will merge with its own IBM Global Services division. [See IBM to buy PwC Consulting for US$3.5 billion.] At the time of the announcement, a company spokesperson indicated the purchase would not prompt any layoffs.
According to the SEC filing, IBM agreed to sell its hard disk drive operations to Hitachi on June 3 which will result in a net loss of US$28 million.
– With files from IDG News Service
