Japan Display Inc. plans to eliminate about 1,500 positions from its domestic workforce as the struggling panel maker intensifies efforts to return to profitability.
The Tokyo-based company will offer voluntary retirement packages to employees in Japan, where it employed 2,639 people at the end of March. The cuts represent approximately 57% of its domestic workforce.
The restructuring move comes as Japan Display continues to grapple with persistent losses in the competitive display market. The firm has struggled to maintain market share against South Korean and Chinese rivals who have aggressively expanded production capacity while driving down prices.
According to the company, the workforce reduction is expected to decrease annual labor costs by ¥13.5 billion ($92.5 million). Japan Display also indicated that staff reductions will extend to its overseas operations, though specific numbers weren’t disclosed.
The display maker has faced mounting challenges in recent years as smartphone manufacturers, its key customers, increasingly shift to OLED technology rather than the LCD panels that have been Japan Display’s primary product.
Industry analysts note that this restructuring represents one of the most significant workforce reductions in Japan’s technology sector in recent years.
