Novo Nordisk, the Danish pharmaceutical company that manufactures Ozempic and Wegovy is reportedly planning to trim the workforce at its operations in Ireland. The employees were reportedly informed that about 75 workers will be let go. Recently about 40 voluntary redundancies were also announced. That means about 115 in total have been rendered jobless.
In early September Novo Nordisk had announced a sweeping restructuring plan that would see 9,000 jobs eliminated worldwide by the end of 2026. The cuts represent about 11 per cent of the Danish drugmaker’s global workforce of 78,400 employees.
The company expects these job cuts to save around $1.3 billion while redirecting resources toward growth in diabetes and obesity treatments.
Amid slowing sales of Ozempic and Wegovy, it is hoped that the will make the company leaner and more agile. The changes are expected to simplify operations, speed up decision-making, and allow greater focus on high-impact areas such as research and development. At the time it was reported that around 5,000 of the job losses would take place in Denmark, where the company is headquartered. A global hiring freeze for non-critical roles was already announced by Novo Nordisk in August, signalling major changes.
The company has already cut its profit forecast for this year three times, reflecting tougher market conditions. Mike Doustdar took over as CEO quite recently, as part of the company’s transformation strategy.