Lam Research to cut 10% of staff
Lam Research is getting rid of approximately 375 regular, temporary and contract workers, or about 10 percent of its total workforce, with roughly 225 of the employees being eliminated from locations in North America, with the rest located throughout Asia and Europe, the company said today in a regulatory filing.
The layoffs are expected to be substantially complete by the June quarter, but the timing “may vary by country based on local legal requirements.”
Lam hopes to reduce its annual cost structure by between $85-$95 million. The restructuring is expected to lead to charges of between $20-$23 million during its current quarter, which is set to end March 29, with between $18-$20 million of the charges related to one-time termination benefits.
Lam said it is also intends to make an early repayment of its long-term debt with ABN AMRO Bank this quarter. As of today, the outstanding principal balance under the loan was $237.5 million, which the company now expects to pay off completely this quarter.
Under the original repayment terms, Lam was scheduled to pay $12.5 million in each of the June 2009 and December 2009 quarters, and the remaining principal of $212.5 million due on March 6, 2010.
In other news included in the same filing, Lam said that Abdi Hariri is assuming the role of group vice president of global operations. He had been group VP of Lam’s customer support business group.
There was no mention of the fate of Lam’s previous head of global ops, Martin Anstice, who had been the company’s chief financial officer until September 29 when he switched jobs with Ernest Maddock.
