European games firm Embracer Group has cut its workforce by eight per cent since it started a "restructuring" process in 2023.
That's according to the company's financials for the quarter ending December 31st, 2023, in which CEO Lars Wingefors wrote that the many organisations it owns have "had to make difficult decisions" to lay people off.
Around the time Embracer started its restructuring program in June 2023, the company said that it employed over 16,600 people. An eight per cent cut to its workforce would clock in at over 1,300 members of staff. In its financial report for Q2 – the three-month period ending September 30th, 2023 – Embracer said that it had laid off 900 people, meaning that in Q3, the company has cut around 400 jobs.
The company had to implement a restructuring program after it failed to land a $2 billion deal, reportedly with Saudi Arabia. As a result, it has had to cut costs, cancel projects, close studios and make layoffs.
"In total, we have reduced our global headcount by eight per cent of the workforce since the start of the program," Wingefors wrote.
"The reductions are managed locally on the operative group level with a focus on informing affected employees first, and then carried out with compassion, respect and integrity towards those affected."