Illumina initiates employee layoffs in response to inflation

Genetic sequencing equipment manufacturer, Illumina Inc, announced on Monday that it has initiated job cuts in an effort to mitigate the effects of persistent inflation and a robust dollar on its business.

As reported by Reuters, Illumina Inc also plans to implement additional workforce reductions in the third quarter and scale down its real estate presence in California. These actions are part of a broader strategy aimed at reducing annualized expenses by over $100 million in 2023.

According to internal emails cited by health news website STAT, Illumina has initiated the layoff of approximately 10% of its research and development team.

The company, however, has not provided confirmation regarding the exact number of employees affected by the layoffs.

Earlier this month, Illumina announced the resignation of CEO Francis deSouza, following a period of engaging in a proxy battle with activist investor Carl Icahn.

According to the company, the workforce reduction began on June 21 and is expected to incur charges of approximately $25 to $35 million. The majority of these charges will be reflected in the company's financials for the second quarter.

As per the regulatory filing, as of January 1, Illumina had approximately 10,200 full-time employees in its core global workforce.