More than 60 jobs are on the chopping block at Johnson & Johnson’s New York City Design Center, according to a state filing.
The company reported a “factory layoff” to the state’s WARN system last week, noting that 64 employees will be laid off Jan. 13 through Jan. 26, 2023. J&J called the reason for the cuts “economic.” , noting that the employees are not part of a union.
“As the largest and most diversified healthcare products company in the world, we are constantly evaluating ways to be more innovative and competitive,” said a J&J spokesperson. Terminal News by email. The company declined to comment on which departments will be affected.
Joe WolkChief Financial Officer Joe Wolk said on the third quarter call earlier this week that the pharmaceutical giant was looking to “adjust our infrastructure for a two-segment company versus a three-segment company that we have had historically.” Its consumer health business, Kenvue, is expected to expand by November 2023, with popular brands including Neutrogena, Tylenol and Band-Aid. The newly unveiled name is a combination of “ken,” which means knowledge, and “sight,” a namesake of sight, according to executives.
Wolk also admitted on the call that J&J is not immune to the “macro-economic pressures” that have rocked the industry this year:
We also have to deal with the macroeconomic pressures that all industries and businesses face. While healthcare is a very, very good business and more resilient than most, it’s not like we’re immune to some of these dynamics. So, as we finalize our plans for 2023, we will seek to prioritize our deployment of resources toward those initiatives, those projects, those services that deliver the most value to patients, which in turn is then healthy for our business.
J&J isn’t the only pharmaceutical giant losing weight. Just over a week ago, Novartis revealed plans to cut around 400 jobs at its Dublin campus by the end of 2024. In a bid to create a “leaner, simpler” business, Novartis cuts 8,000 of the current 108,000 positions worldwide, a spokesperson said. Endpoints last week.
GSK also said last week that some jobs would be affected by the closure of its business operations in Kenya, but declined to specify how many.