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(Bloomberg) -- Starbucks Corp. is eliminating 1,100 corporate jobs in a move aimed at increasing efficiency and quickly enacting changes to revitalize the company.
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The cuts represent about 7% of the global employee base working outside of company-owned stores, which also includes roles such as warehousing that aren’t affected by the restructure. Starbucks doesn’t disclose how many corporate workers it has, and the bulk of its employees around the world work in its cafes.
Chief Executive Officer Brian Niccol, who took over in September amid declining sales at the coffee giant, had announced the impending restructuring in January. Workers who are losing their jobs will be notified by Tuesday, according to an announcement. Corporate employees were asked to work remotely the whole week.
Starbucks, which said it’s looking to remove duplication, is the latest big company to slash layers of management. Southwest Airlines Co. said earlier this month that it planned to cut 15% of corporate jobs in its first-ever round of layoffs.
Niccol is also taking aim at the coffee chain’s US menu, with the company saying on Monday that it’s removing some less popular drinks as part of a plan to simplify operations and serve customers faster.
As of September, Starbucks employed 211,000 people in the US, with 95% working in its more than 10,000 company-operated stores and the rest in corporate and other roles. The proportions are similar outside of the US, where the company employed 150,000.
The cuts don’t affect workers in cafes, or in warehousing, manufacturing, distribution and roasting operations.
Workers losing their jobs will get pay and benefits until May 2. After that, they’ll get severance based on tenure, according to Starbucks. They’ll also get career transition support, among other assistance.
The coffee chain is closing several hundred open and unfilled positions as part of the restructure.
“I recognize the news is difficult,” Niccol said in the announcement. “We believe it’s a necessary change to position Starbucks for future success.”
Shares of Starbucks were up less than 1% at 9:50 a.m. The stock rose almost 17% in the past 12 months through Friday’s close, compared to a roughly 18% increase for the S&P 500 Index.