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Microsoft introduced a voluntary exit program Monday for eligible employees in Canada, India, the United Kingdom and the U.S., offering staff considering leaving the company an opportunity to do so.
Amy Coleman, Microsoft’s chief people officer, said in a message to employees that the time-limited Voluntary Exit Offer is available to staff at level 70 and below in participating teams, referring to the company’s internal job grading system.
Participation varies by organization depending on business priorities, customer commitments and workforce needs, she said.
“The Voluntary Exit Offer is new for us. We’ll learn from it,” Coleman said.
Microsoft did not disclose how many employees would be eligible, but tech news outlet The Verge reported that the offer could extend to as many as 60,000 people, citing unnamed sources.
According to the report, participating teams include AI Experiences, Copilot, CoreAI, Windows + Devices, Xbox, finance, and human resources. Copilot is Microsoft’s artificial intelligence assistant, and Xbox is its gaming division.
Cloud + AI, Microsoft AI and corporate, external and legal affairs are participating partially, while marketing, commercial business, discovery and quantum, and security are excluded.
The Verge reported that the program would allow Microsoft to reduce its workforce without another round of layoffs, months after the company cut 4,800 jobs, primarily in Xbox and commercial sales.
The outlet also cited a report by Fortune, a U.S. business magazine, that Xbox CEO Asha Sharma was planning further layoffs.
The new initiative follows a voluntary retirement program earlier this year, which lets eligible workers choose to retire early. It covered approximately 9,000 U.S. employees whose combined age and years of service totaled at least 70, according to The Verge.
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