Gilead and Roche are continuing to lay off employees in California, with each company revealing a recent round of cuts through the state\u2019s Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) program.<\/p>\n
While Gilead is eliminating 149 positions at its headquarters in Foster City, Roche is letting go of 108 workers at its Molecular Systems division in Santa Clara, according to separate filings<\/a> with the state. The reductions for both companies will go into effect at the end of May.<\/p>\n For Gilead, the cuts come on top of a round of\u00a0layoffs<\/a> five months ago at its headquarters.<\/p>\n In an email, a Gilead spokesperson explained that the reductions are to \u201cfurther align our resources as we prepare for the upcoming launch of twice-yearly lenacapavir for HIV and other near-term launches.\u201d<\/p>\n Already approved as Sunlenca as a therapy for certain patients with HIV, lenacapavir is expected to shake up the pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) market as a long-acting option if it wins FDA approval. The agency is slated to decide on Gilead’s filing by June 19.<\/p>\n Also late last year, Gilead\u00a0revealed<\/a> that it was closing an R&D facility in Seattle, costing 72 employees their jobs.<\/p>\n Meanwhile at Roche, the cuts come at its Santa Clara site where it conducts<\/a> R&D, software development, reagent manufacturing and business operations, according to its website. The Roche Molecular Systems unit is part of the company’s diagnostics division.<\/p>\n “As part of our ongoing commitment to innovation and operational efficiency, we continuously review and adapt our business in line with customer and patient needs, reallocating resources as required. Regular reviews of our strategy and operating model ensure we deliver on our commitments to customers and patients,” Roche said in a statement. “Today we have over 2,000 open positions across Roche. While the overall number of employees is stable, changes might occur in certain departments though.”<\/p>\n In its annual finance report<\/a>\u00a0(PDF), published in late January, Roche said that it was undergoing a \u201cfundamental reorganization\u201d of Spark Therapeutics, its gene therapy subsidiary. The move is part of the company\u2019s broader restructuring of its pharma division, a Roche spokesperson told<\/a> Fierce Pharma last month.<\/p>\n