The downsizing comes after a year of workforce cuts and reorganization for Roche’s subsidiary.
After enduring multiple rounds of layoffs last year, Genentech’s employees are facing more uncertainty as the Roche unit lets go of 143 workers at its headquarters in South San Francisco, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification.
The layoffs, originally reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, will go into effect on July 14, as reported in the WARN notice. The company framed the downsizing as just business as usual.
“We consistently evaluate all facets of our operations to ensure we remain well-positioned to meet patients’ evolving needs today while continuing to deliver innovative new medicines in the future,” Roche said in an email to BioSpace.
“This means that periodically, adjustments and decisions are necessary regarding the right makeup of our workforce within our company’s various functions. As part of these ongoing evaluations, we identified the need to reduce 143 positions across several departments.”
The move comes after a year of shifting priorities and investments for Genentech. In April 2024 the company pledged to reduce its workforce by 3% across multiple departments, affecting more than 400 people. A few months later, in August 2024, Genentech shuttered its entire cancer immunology group amid a reorganization of oncology research, then followed that news by laying off 93 employees at the South San Francisco headquarters.
Genentech continues to invest in other areas of cancer research, in late May plunking down $105 million upfront and up to $2 billion total in a deal with Orionis to develop molecular glues in oncology targets.
Meanwhile, Genentech is expanding on the east coast, with a $700 million commitment for a new drug manufacturing facility in North Carolina, as part of Roche’s broader $50 billion investment pledge in the U.S. Although a company spokesperson said in early May that Roche’s pledge could be reevaluated “if legislation or regulations were implemented that would harm our industry’s ability to operate and innovate in America,” Roche has not change its plans so far.
Editor’s note: This story was updated on Thursday, June 12 to replace a quote from Roche.
