The American athletic footwear company, Nike has announced layoffs affecting 740 employees at its headquarters in Oregon, U.S. The decision, aimed at reducing costs, follows a decline in revenue during the first half of the fiscal year 2024-25.
Michele Adams, the Vice President for people solutions, outlined the upcoming "second phase of impacts" set to begin by June 28 in a letter to authorities. This move follows the company's previous announcement in December to cut $2 billion in costs over the next three years.
Earlier in February, Nike had already let go of a number of workers, targeting a reduction of 2% of its total workforce, equivalent to over 1600 positions. As of May 31, 2023, Nike had approximately 83,700 employees, according to a Reuters report.
While the company's shares saw a minor increase in after-hours trading, they have experienced a 13% decline since the beginning of the year. Nike's decision to implement layoffs is in line with similar moves made by other companies in the U.S. and Canada to manage costs amidst an uncertain market environment.
In March, Nike revealed that its revenues for the first half of the fiscal year 2024-25 would see a decrease by a single-digit percentage, attributed to plans to streamline certain product lines.
