Microsoft Announces 7,800 Layoffs, or 6 Percent of Its Workforce

More bad news for Microsoft.

The company announced Wednesday that it will eliminate 7,800 positions, mostly in its underperforming phones unit. It also will record an impairment charge of roughly $7.6 billion related to the acquisition of the Nokia Devices and Services business in addition to a restructuring charge of about $750 million to $850 million.

The moves are intended to help Microsoft “better focus and align resources,” the Redmond, Wash., company said. It said it would provide more details during its fourth-quarter earnings announcement on July 21.

In an email to employees, Chief Executive Satya Nadella said the staff cuts would occur over the next several months.

“I don’t take changes in plans like these lightly, given that they affect the lives of people who have made an impact at Microsoft,” he said.

The announcement is the latest in a series of cost-cutting measures and other moves at the company. A year ago, Microsoft said it was cutting 18,000 jobs in an enormous round of layoffs.

More recently, it announced that it would transfer some of its imagery acquisition operations to Uber and would sharpen its focus on advertising platform technology and search.