Toshiba plans to reduce its workforce by 5%, letting go of 7,000 staff, CNN reports. The reduction will be done through direct layoffs and a new early retirement incentive program.
The news comes as part of the Japanese conglomerate’s pledge to transform itself in a new five-year plan. The plan, announced Thursday, includes the removal of “non-focus businesses” like Toshiba’s British nuclear power plant and U.S. liquefied natural gas businesses.
Toshiba will shut down the British plant, NuGeneration Ltd., early next year, having failed to procure a buyer. The U.S. business has not yet been sold, but Toshiba anticipates a loss of 93 billion yen ($816 million).
In good news for shareholders, Toshiba plans to buy back up to 40% of its own shares as part of a long-term goal of increasing dividends.
The conglomerate also planned for capital expenditure of 810 billion yen ($7 billion) and research and development investments of 930 billion yen ($8 billion) to “grow new businesses, improve profit margins, and generate future cash flows,” Toshiba stated. Future investments will be focused on energy storage, semiconductor technology, and precision medicine.
Since the 2015 accounting scandal rocked the company, Toshiba has had to sell assets like its memory chip business and U.S. nuclear unit, Westinghouse.