Microsoft has announced the launch of a massive voluntary departure program. According to available reports, this was stated by the company's Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer, Amy Coleman. The essence of the initiative is that a number of employees can choose to leave the company within a limited timeframe and receive financial and other support for doing so. According to media estimates, the program covers about 60,000 people, which is approximately a quarter of the workforce—ranging from 25% to 27% of the total headcount according to various calculations.
Who Will the Initiative Affect
Employees working in participating teams in the US, Canada, India, and the UK, holding job levels 70 and below within Microsoft's internal hierarchy, are eligible to participate. According to VGTimes, this definition even includes some vice presidents and general managers. The company stated that age, tenure, and professional performance do not matter. According to The Verge, the offer was extended to artificial intelligence and Copilot divisions, the Xbox team, as well as finance and HR specialists; corporate, external, and legal affairs departments are partially affected. Meanwhile, marketing, business and sales, quantum computing, security, and data centers are not included in the initiative.
Severance Pay and Timeline
Those who agree to leave are promised financial support and assistance in finding new employment. The company has not disclosed exact amounts, but according to reports, the terms will be close to Microsoft's standard severance packages. The decision to participate must be made in early December 2026, and those who agree must leave the company by December 31, 2026. According to Amy Coleman, this is a new experience for the company, and Microsoft intends to learn from it.
Context: Not the First Move in 2026
The launched program is not the only measure of this kind in the current year. In the spring and summer of 2026, the company already laid off and retired thousands of employees. Microsoft's total workforce, as of the end of June, was around 223,000 people, meaning the initiative for 60,000 participants represents the departure of about a quarter of the staff. The company has not disclosed which specific functions will be outsourced or shut down after the program concludes.
Echoes of Rumors Regarding Xbox's Fate
The layoff announcement coincided with media discussions of rumors regarding a potential sale of the Xbox division. The very fact that the Xbox team was included in the voluntary departure program amplifies these conversations, although Microsoft does not directly link the initiative to the restructuring of the gaming business. For observers, this looks like part of a broader workforce restructuring amid resource reallocation in favor of artificial intelligence-related areas.
