Toshiba, the Japanese conglomerate, has announced plans to cut up to 4,000 jobs domestically as part of its restructuring efforts under new ownership. The job cuts, representing 6% of Toshiba’s local workforce, come after the company was delisted from the stock market in December following a $13 billion takeover by a consortium led by Japan Industrial Partners (JIP).
Once a giant employer in Japan, Toshiba has faced a decade of challenges, including management issues and scandals such as accounting irregularities and the sale of its memory chip business, Kioxia, to cover losses from nuclear power plants. The consortium’s goal is to improve Toshiba’s performance, which is seen as a test for private equity firms in Japan.
In addition to the job cuts, Toshiba plans to move some office functions from central Tokyo to Kawasaki, a city west of the capital. The company aims to achieve a 10% operating profit margin within three years.
The news of layoffs at Toshiba comes amidst a trend of job cuts in Japan, with companies like Konica Minolta, Shiseido, and Omron also announcing layoffs in recent months. This shift in Japan’s corporate culture, where layoffs were previously uncommon due to strong worker protection laws, reflects a changing workplace landscape influenced by factors such as rising wages, increased worker mobility, and a growing number of foreign workers.