Starbucks laying off more than 1,000 corporate employees
Starbucks announced Monday that it will be laying off 1,100 corporate employees across the globe.
The move comes as dozens of other private companies have announced layoffs so far in 2025, as well as thousands of positions within the federal government.
Starbucks layoffs
FILE - A Starbucks Coffee illuminated round logo sign is displayed outside a store on February 22, 2025. (Photo by Cheng Xin/Getty Images)
In a letter to employees released Monday, new Chairman and CEO Brian Niccol said the company will inform employees who are being laid off by mid-day Tuesday.
Niccol said Starbucks is also eliminating several hundred open and unfilled positions.
Baristas and roasting and warehouse staff are not included in the layoffs.
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What they're saying:
Niccol said in January that corporate layoffs were coming in an effort to streamline operations.
"Our intent is to operate more efficiently, increase accountability, reduce complexity and drive better integration," Niccol wrote in the letter.
"Our size and structure can slow us down, with too many layers, managers of small teams and roles focused primarily on coordinating work," Niccol added.
By the numbers:
Starbucks has 16,000 corporate support employees worldwide.
Starbucks sales at established locations fell 2% in its 2024 fiscal year.
RELATED: 2025 layoffs: List of companies cutting jobs this year
New Starbucks CEO
The backstory:
Starbucks hired Niccol last fall to turn around sluggish sales. He has said he wants to improve service times — especially during the morning rush — and reestablish stores as community gathering places.
In the U.S., customers are tired of price increases and growing wait times. In China, its second-largest market, Starbucks faced growing competition from cheaper rivals.
Dig deeper:
Niccol is also cutting items from Starbucks' menu and experimenting with its ordering algorithms to better handle its mix of mobile, drive-thru and in-store orders.
2025 layoffs
Big picture view:
Headcount reductions in early 2025 have taken place at companies in a broad range of sectors, impacting thousands of employees.
Nearly 49,800 jobs received the ax from U.S. companies in January, according to a Feb. 6 report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
Separately, thousands of federal government employees have also been laid off or fired as President Donald Trump and Elon Musk work to slash federal spending.
RELATED: Elon Musk says federal employees must email ‘what they got done last week’
The Source: Information in this article was taken from a letter to Starbucks employees that was obtained by The Associated Press. Background information about Starbucks operations was taken from The Associated Press. Information about 2025 layoffs was taken from previous FOX Television Station reporting. This story was reported from Detroit.