Panasonic To Slash 10,000 Jobs in Downsizing Estimated To Cost $900 Million

A longstanding name in the electronics and consumer appliances world, Panasonic is now set to slash 10,000 jobs — 5,000 in its home nation of Japan and the other half internationally.

“In terms of management reform, toward transformation into an organization where individual employees create higher productivity, the Company will thoroughly review operational efficiency at each Group company, mainly in sales and indirect departments, and reevaluate the numbers of organizations and personnel actually needed. In addition, the Company will promote the termination of loss-making businesses with no prospect of improving profit, as well as the integration and closing of sites. Through these measures, the Company will optimize our personnel on a global scale,” a May 9 press release outlining the matter read.

“This measure targets 10,000 employees (5,000 in Japan and 5,000 overseas) at consolidated companies, and it will be implemented mainly in FY3/26, in accordance with the labor laws, rules, and regulations of each country and region,” it continued.

Panasonic went on to indicate that trimming its workforce, and the structural reform necessary in doing so, is expected to incur costs of about 130 billion yen (or nearly $900 million). However, by the end of the fiscal year ending in March 2027, the company plans to have enjoyed profit improvement of 122 billion yen (or $841 million) from this restructuring moves alone, recouping most of the expense within the span of two years.

Panasonic Plans Profit Through HQ, Business Reform

As part of the aforementioned two-year plan, Panasonic also gestured toward plans to reform its headquarters operations, consumer electronics business, and business sector execution more broadly.

The streamlining and consolidation of its HQ operations and consumer electronics business is projected to result in improved profits of 47 billion yen ($324 million) and 33 billion yen ($228 million), respectively, while improvements made to its larger business sector as a whole are anticipated to lift profits by 42 billion yen ($290 million) during that time frame.