Takeda Cuts 180+ Jobs Amid Pipeline Shake-Up

Pictured: A sign in front of a Takeda building/JHVEPhoto/iStock

Takeda plans to lay off about 186 employees in Massachusetts, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act (WARN) report updated Friday. 

According to the report, the cuts will affect employees in four locations across three cities in Massachusetts: Cambridge, Lexington and North Reading. Up to 138 jobs will be cut from Takeda Development Centers America, and 48 will be cut from Takeda Shire Human Genetic Therapies, Inc. (SHGT).

The layoffs will begin in early July and wrap up before the end of the year, the company stated in the notice. 

A Takeda spokesperson told BioSpace in an email that these layoffs are not part of a larger initiative to reduce staff across the company. Rather, they are part of an effort to make sure the company is “best positioned to meet [its] current and future priorities.”

“Changes are being made in a few very specific areas of the organization that impact some roles as a result—but there is no plan for a companywide reduction,” the spokesperson said. 

Some affected workers may have the opportunity to stay at Takeda in a different role, the spokesperson added.

“Takeda is committed to supporting employees in impacted roles during this time in multiple ways, including transition resources, consultation services and assistance identifying other possible opportunities within Takeda.”

The spokesperson confirmed the layoffs are related to the company’s recent decision to reduce its preclinical and discovery efforts in adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene therapies and rare hematology and focus on its core therapeutic areas.

The cuts also include “adjustments that are being made outside of R&D within Takeda Shire Human Genetic Therapies, Inc.,” the spokesperson added.