The largest US provider of made to order semiconductors, GlobalFoundaries Inc., has begun cutting jobs and instituted a hiring freeze, as the market for semiconductors begins to cool.
On Friday the company notified employees of the pending job cuts, however they did not apprise workers of when they would occur or who would be affected. During its earnings call Tuesday, the company told investors and analysts that it was looking at various options and initiatives which would allow it to cut operating expenses annually by $200 million.
A spokeswoman for the company confirmed the pending layoffs and hiring freeze, however she declined to provide any further details, only noting the company was, “taking focused actions on our workforce.” She noted, the chipmaker “had a strong third quarter and solid fourth-quarter guidance, but based on the current macroeconomic environment” the company will need to contain costs.
Based out of Malta, New York, and majority owned by the Abu Dhabi government, the company is seeking funds from the $52 billion CHIPS Act, to fund an expansion of domestic semiconductor chip manufacturing. However in engaging in layoffs, and freezing hiring, the company joins many other players in the technology and semiconductor industry lately.
Bloomberg News reported that Intel Corp. is undergoing cost reductions, which are expected to entail a significant number of job cuts. Other companies, like Micron Technology Inc., had dramatically scaled back on planned hiring. Meta Platforms Inc., began widespread layoffs, as has fellow social media giant Twitter. Meanwhile Qualcomm Inc., Apple Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. have all paused hiring for many of their divisions.
GlobalFoundries does not appear in too much difficulty however. On Tuesday the company reported revenue was up 22%, and the projected sales and profits in the current quarter both beat analyst estimates. However the company is fighting to gain a greater share of the outsourced chip production market, while producing enough scale to compete with the industry giant, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.
