HP to eliminate 30,000 jobs?
updated 05:04 pm EDT, Thu May 17, 2012
Announcement expected next week
HP is reportedly preparing to reduce its workforce by 10 to 15 percent, displacing approximately 30,000 existing employees, unnamed sources have told AllThingsD. The layoffs are said to be a core element of a restructuring plan that will affect all of the company's divisions.
Several reports disagree on the exact number of eliminated positions, though one source claims the exact number could be expanded or reduced depending on certain conditions. The company currently employs approximately 320,000 people, suggesting as many as 48,000 staffers may eventually be displaced.
The cuts are said to part of a larger strategy to produce enough buying power for the company to widen its investments, rather than serving as an effort to maintain profitability.
The restructuring will reportedly occur over the span of a year or longer. Approximately 5,000 employees may be offered voluntary retirement packages, though the rest are expected to be directly cut without incentives.
HP CEO Meg Whitman is expected to formally announce the move during a conference call on Wednesday.
