IBM implied that the Forbes report regarding its massive layoff was inaccurate and emphasized that its restructuring charges “equates to a small fraction of what’s been reported”
International Business Machines rejected the report from Forbes magazine regarding its massive job cuts. The media entity claimed that IBM will eliminate approximately 26% of workforce or more than 100,000 employees.
IBM disclosed its plan to cut jobs during its earnings report last week. In an e-mailed statement to Reuters, the tech giant clarified that the plan will only affect “several thousand” employees, which is a “small fraction” of the number reported by Forbes.
IBM recorded $600 million charge for workforce rebalancing
“IBM does not comment on rumors, even ridiculous or baseless ones,” wrote IBM in its statement.
The company added that if anyone only checked its earnings statements, which are readily available to the public or if they simply asked the management; “they will know that IBM already announced” that it only recorded” $600 million charge for workforce rebalancing.” The company said the amount is “equates to several thousand people, a small fraction of what’s been reported.”
IBM did not categorically deny the report, but its statement implied that the report was inaccurate.
During its fourth quarter earnings conference call, IBM CFO Martin Schroeter said the company wrote down restructuring charges of approximately $580 million, but he did not provide a specific number as to how many employees will be terminated.
When asked by the Wall Street Journal regarding the number of the workforce reduction, Schroeter’s responded, “We are not going to replicate the same level of restructuring that we had last year. It will be a lower amount.”
An analyst estimated that IBM likely cut 8,000 jobs
Based on the amount of the restructuring charges, an analyst estimated that IBM will likely cut 8,000 jobs, which is similar to its workforce reductions over the past years.
Bernstein analyst Toni Sacconaghi noted that over the past seven years, IBM recorded annual restructuring charges in the range of $450 million to $1.5 billion. He estimated that the company reduced its workforce between 6,500 to 21,500 jobs per year. He also commented that the report from Forbes was “puzzling.”
