Intel, having given a heads-up that it plans to let go 15,000 employees by year-end, has reportedly fired the first shot. According to Tom’s Hardware, the struggling giant has started issuing formal layoff notices to 1,300 employees at its Gordon Moore Park facility in Oregon.

The report notes that those who received the message would stay until next month before their positions are terminated.

Local media The Oregonian points out that the move affects about one in every 18 Intel employees in Oregon, where the company is the largest private employer. To be more specific, the layoffs will impact more than 5% of Intel’s workforce in Oregon, marking one of the largest mass layoffs in the state’s history.

It is worth noting that these figures don’t account for employees who accepted voluntary severance, buyouts, or early retirement packages, according to Tom’s Hardware. With Intel’s Oregon workforce standing at around 22,000, a 15% reduction would bring the total down to fewer than 20,000, the report says.

And more bad news may be around the corner. The report by Tom’s Hardware also indicates that the 1,300 layoffs represent less than half of Intel’s overall reduction target. Therefore, if Intel applies these cuts evenly across its workforce, the total number of employees leaving, whether voluntary or involuntary, could exceed 3,000.

Moreover, Intel’s Sales and Marketing Group (SMG) may be another hardest-hitting sector, as it is reportedly facing a 35% reduction in costs, according to Tom’s Hardware.

After its August earnings call, at which Intel reported a net loss of USD 1.6 billion for Q2, 2024, the company has been grappling to get out of the rut by a series of initiatives, including plans to cut approximately 15% of its workforce and suspend dividend payments starting in Q4, which are parts of Intel’s broader effort to implement a USD 10 billion cost reduction program.

In addition to the aforementioned efforts, Intel also tries to secure more external funding. The company is expected to receive an USD 8.5 billion direct funding grant from Washington’s CHIPS Act by the end of the year. Moreover, Intel confirmed a separate USD 3 billion award for its Secure Enclave project, which will enable the company to supply its advanced 18A chips, according to its press release.

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