Nikon to cut 20% of workforce

Japan’s Nikon Inc. will cut more than 2,000 production workers outside of Japan by March, 2022, and shift production to Thailand in an effort to staunch financial losses. Japan’s Nikkei newspaper reports further states Nikon is attempting to bring the companies overhead in line with sales. The company will continue to make LiDAR sensors in Japan.

“It’s important to fit the entire company in a way that is commensurate with the scale of sales,” says Toshikazu Umatate, president, at a financial results briefing on Nov. 5. He stated he would reduce the number of overseas employees to just under 60% of the level as of the fiscal year ended March 31, 2017. Maintain overseas factories, but reduce production personnel according to sales level. The sales force will also be reduced.

According to Nikon’s consolidated financial results for the April-September period of 2020 announced on the 5th, the final loss was 31.5 billion yen (compared to a surplus of 16.3 billion yen in the same period of the previous year). Sales decreased 40% year-on-year to 175.6 billion yen, and operating loss was 46.6 billion yen (17.5 billion yen surplus). Sales in cameras, precision machinery business, and healthcare business all fell.

DPReview did an extensive analysis of Nikon’s prospects for camera sales here.