Microsoft Offers 60,000 Workers a Buyout as It Tries to Cut Without Another Mass Layoff
Microsoft Offers 60,000 Workers a Buyout as It Tries to Cut Without Another Mass Layoff
Earlier this year, Microsoft tested a narrower route to workforce reduction through a voluntary retirement program. About 9,000 employees were eligible, and roughly one-third accepted, according to a person familiar with the results. The program helped the company make fewer layoffs than it otherwise might have, Business Insider reported.
That experiment came against a tougher backdrop. Microsoft had already laid off 4,800 workers, principally affecting Xbox and commercial sales, while continuing to spend heavily on AI infrastructure. The company is now taking the voluntary model much further: about 60,000 employees, more than a quarter of its workforce, are eligible for a new Voluntary Exit Offer in the US, Canada, India and the UK.
Chief People Officer Amy Coleman framed the offer as an employee choice rather than a dictated cut. “The Voluntary Exit Offer reflects an important part of how we’re evolving our approach to change: creating greater flexibility and, where possible, more ways for employees to shape their next chapter.” The memo says participation varies by business priorities, customer commitments and workforce needs — a reminder that the program is selective, not companywide.
The practical terms look close to Microsoft’s usual severance structure. Employees at levels 64 and below can receive one week of base pay for every six months served; levels 65 to 67 can receive two weeks per six months, alongside continued stock vesting and health coverage in eligible cases. Workers have until early December to decide, with departures planned for year-end.
The offer reaches teams including Copilot, CoreAI, Windows + Devices, Xbox, finance and HR, while marketing, commercial business, discovery and quantum, and security are not participating, according to The Verge. Microsoft calls the program new and says it will learn from it; for employees, it is a time-limited decision amid a company still redrawing its workforce around AI.
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