UPDATE:
In response to the news about OnePlus’ layoffs in Europe, the company clarified that it was a strategic restructuring move limited to its European division. In an official forum post, Tuomas L., head of OnePlus’ Strategy in Europe, revealed that around 20 employees were affected by this restructuring in Germany, France, and the UK.
You can read the forum post here. An excerpt from the post has been added below.
“As part of our strategy, we are looking to capitalize on opportunities in the Nordic region and Benelux by hiring for new positions, relocating some existing European staff and further enhancing our capabilities in these strategic markets. At the same time, we are making organizational changes in some existing markets, specifically Germany, France and the UK.”
“We are doing everything we can to support the approximately 20 total employees in these three markets who will be affected by this restructuring, including offering redundancy packages per local regulations. We highly value the contributions of these staff members and will do our best to ensure a smooth transition through this process.”
OnePlus just launched the OnePlus 8 series, consisting of OnePlus 8 Pro, the company’s most ambitious smartphone till date. However, the same cannot be said for its employees. According to a report by Engadget, the Chinese smartphone company has reportedly laid off several workers in Europe.
It is not the first time OnePlus has downsized in Europe. Last year, staffs in Spain and Italy had to face the same and as of now, the company has not a single worker in those regions.
The current lay-off includes removing up to 80% of employees (around 20 employees) in the regional offices of France, Germany, and the UK. To this, OnePlus responded that it is carrying out some strategic restructuring in Europe and even confirmed to be hiring in the region.
According to a source close to the matter, the teams in Denmark, Finland, Netherlands and Belgium seem to be unaffected. The company considers these markets to have more potential and thus even asked some of its employees to relocate to Helsinki, which is expected to replace London as OnePlus’ European headquarters.
The primary reason for OnePlus to make such decisions lies in its new philosophy. As the company raced towards premium 5G smartphones, carriers like O2 and EE discontinued their partnerships with the brand in the UK. The new OnePlus 8 series is only available on 3 in the region.
As per Ben Wood, Chief Analyst at CCS Insight, ‘OnePlus has fallen into the trap of over-promising and under-delivering’. The company is struggling hard to maintain relationships with carriers in Europe and has even turned back on core fans by stepping into the premium range.
Anyway, before the recent layoff, OnePlus had over 2,000 employees worldwide. The current tally of workes is unknown at the moment.
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(Source)
