Lenovo laying off ‘less than 1 percent’ of its Triangle workers

Giant electronics device maker Lenovo is laying off “less than 1 percent” of its 3,200 Triangle workers as part of a larger, worldwide job-cutting initiative.

Overall, Lenovo is laying off “less than 2 percent” of its worldwide workforce, according to the announcement the company issued Tuesday, but company spokesman Ray Gorman said in an e-mail that the local impact would be less than 1 percent. Less than 1 percent would be fewer than 32 Triangle workers.

The affected employees in the Triangle are being notified this week, and most will be departing by the end of October, Gorman said.

Lenovo, which has about 55,000 employees worldwide, said the majority of the job cuts are focused on its Chicago-based Motorola smartphone division. Motorola doesn’t have any operations in the Triangle.

Lenovo, the No. 1 PC maker, has been intent on turning around the money-losing Motorola business since its diversification strategy led it to acquire Motorola for $2.91 billion in the fall of 2014.

Lenovo is based in China but has a headquarters in Morrisville.

Worldwide, “the majority of the positions being eliminated are part of the ongoing strategic integration between Lenovo and its Motorola smartphone businesss as the company further aligns its organization and streamlines its product portfolio to best compete in the global smartphone market,” Lenovo said in its announcement.

Lenovo also said that it is “making adjustments in other areas of the business as part of a continued effort to manage costs, drive efficiency and support ongoing improvement in overall financial performance. While these actions are never easy, they are a necessary part of our continued efforts to ensure long-term, profitable growth across all of our businesses.”

Last year Lenovo laid off 3,200 white-collar workers worldwide – about 5 percent of its workforce at the time – including 230 Triangle employees. Those layoffs were part of a cost-cutting initiative aimed at reducing annual expenses by about $1.35 billion.

Lenovo also issued a statement dismissing speculation that the Motorola headquarters might move to North Carolina.

“Lenovo is absolutely committed to Chicago and we plan to maintain our Motorola Mobility headquarters there, and as (a) hub of innovation for the company, our Moto design center will remain there,” the statement noted.

This story was originally published September 27, 2016 at 10:30 AM with the headline "Lenovo laying off ‘less than 1 percent’ of its Triangle workers."