Samsung Electronics has cut jobs at its U.S. display, phone and other consumer electronics operations — affecting workers mainly in New Jersey and Texas, according to documents an
The report indicates that samsung Electronics has cut jobs at its U.S. display, phone and other consumer electronics operations — affecting workers mainly in New Jersey and Texas, according to documents and two people familiar with the matter.
It further notes that the South Korean tech giant stated in a statement to Reuters on Sunday that 739 roles in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, have been affected by Samsung Electronics America (SEA )’s plans to move its headquarters to Texas, as SEA focuses on consumer electronics and does not include chips.
A majority of people affected have received relocation offers, but others were let go, it added without elaborating.
At SEA’s Plano, Texas office, some 100 workers , including staff in its mobile division, have been let go, according to one person who stated they were among the employees laid off. Sources declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue.
The cuts — though related to the shift in headquarters — underscore diverging fortunes within the South Korean tech giant with its chip division skyrocketing to record profit but its consumer electronics units languishing as chip costs surge.
Samsung’s decision to shift SEA’s headquarters is striking because SEA employees in New Jersey only moved to new offices with much fanfare less than a year ago. SEA employs about 1,200 workers in New Jersey, according to a press release by U.S. Representative Josh Gottheimer, who attended an event to mark the opening of the new offices in September.
While the precise extent of the layoffs at SEA could not be learned, documents seen by Reuters show that the unit notified some employees on June 30 of an “enterprise-wide reduction-in-force”, adding that there were a “significant number of impacts”.
LinkedIn posts reviewed by Reuters also show more than 30 workers, including senior sales and marketing officials in both Texas and New Jersey as well as a few in other U.S. locations, stated they have been let go or left the company over the past couple of weeks.
Details about the job losses at SEA have not been reported previously.
Samsung stated in its statement that the shift of SEA’s headquarters “may lead to changes in our workforce structure, such as employees who are unable to relocate, or certain functions that are optimised to ensure our roles align to key business priorities.”
Samsung has flagged it will likely post a 19-fold jump in second-quarter profit on strong AI-driven chip demand. It also announced plans last month to invest hundreds of billions of dollars in new chip plants.
Its mobile division, however, is expected to post its first-ever loss as it grapples with intense competition from Apple and Chinese rivals like TCL and Hisense, which are also challenging Samsung in televisions and home appliances. Higher chip costs due to the AI boom have weighed on earnings for all of its consumer electronics products.
Samsung’s job cuts mirror moves by other global firms, including Microsoft, Amazon and Meta, which have shed jobs while redirecting spending toward AI infrastructure.
It has also joined Tesla, Oracle and other tech companies in moving headquarters or major operations to Texas, known for lower taxes and business-friendly regulations. The state is already home to Samsung’s chip factories and a mobile hub in Plano.
