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Novartis will reduce 550 full-time positions by the end of 2027 at its Swiss facility, according to Reuters. The job cuts are linked to the company ceasing production of tablets, capsules, and sterile medicine packaging at its Stein, Switzerland plant. At the same time, Novartis is investing $80 million in another Swiss site in Schweizerhalle, where 80 new roles are expected to be created by the end of 2028.
The company emphasized that these changes are unrelated to its manufacturing expansion in the U.S. Last week, Novartis unveiled plans to build a manufacturing hub in North Carolina as part of a $23 billion investment in American manufacturing, aimed in part at addressing potential tariffs from former President Donald Trump on pharmaceutical companies that do not onshore production.
Nurix Therapeutics is implementing a “small, targeted reduction in force” following a regular operational review, according to Fierce Biotech. The Brisbane, California–based biotech did not disclose the number of employees affected. The company emphasized that the layoffs aim to better align resources with strategic priorities and support ongoing clinical and research programs, without pausing or cutting any programs.
This move comes shortly after Nurix launched a Phase II clinical trial for its lead oncology asset, bexobrutideg (NX-5948), in patients with relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Nurix focuses on discovering, developing, and commercializing targeted protein degradation medicines for oncology and autoimmune diseases.
Fierce Biotech reported that the company regularly reviews operations to ensure it prioritizes programs with the highest potential to advance science and maximize pipeline value. The targeted reduction is part of these ongoing strategic adjustments.
Genetic therapy startup Ensoma is cutting half of its workforce as it transitions into a clinical-stage company. CEO Jim Burns announced the layoffs in a Nov. 19 LinkedIn post, confirming to Endpoints News that only 37 employees will remain. The reduction reflects the company’s focus on financial discipline during growth and clinical progress.
Ensoma is recruiting patients for its first clinical study, centered on its investigational in vivo hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) therapy EN-374 for X-linked chronic granulomatous disease. The company is also advancing programs for sickle cell disease and making oncology a greater strategic focus, aiming to leverage its HSC platform to improve solid tumor treatments.
Burns noted that the workforce adjustment is a necessary step to support the company’s shift into clinical development while continuing to progress its pipeline efficiently.
AbbVie is laying off 59 employees across three California sites effective Jan. 9, according to a WARN notice filed Nov. 13. The North Chicago–based pharma will let go of 48 staff in Dublin, nine in Livermore, and two in Pleasanton, and will permanently close the Dublin and Livermore sites after Jan. 9.
AbbVie did not comment publicly on the layoffs, but a source told BioSpace the WARN notice is unrelated to the company ending its collaboration with Calico Life Sciences, which is expected to affect about 100 chemists. The layoffs are part of broader operational adjustments at the California sites.
The workforce reduction underscores AbbVie’s ongoing strategy to optimize site operations while maintaining progress on its research and development activities.
Nxera Pharma will part ways with 15% of its employees in a sweeping realignment initiative aimed at enhancing its “path to profitability” and helping it achieve growth and revenue targets for 2030. The layoffs will affect approximately 56 people across its Japan and U.K. operations, based on the company’s 2024 annual report, which listed 374 employees at year-end. Nxera is also reducing its executive team from 10 to seven members, effective March 2026.
Late last month, Sensei Biotherapeutics announced an additional workforce reduction following a strategic review of its business. In its third-quarter earnings report on Nov. 14, the Boston-based biotech revealed it will downsize by roughly 65%, maintaining only a “small team of employees” to explore strategic alternatives and comply with financial reporting requirements. As of March 24, the company had 14 full-time employees and one part-time worker, meaning the latest layoffs will affect around nine people.
Bayer’s workforce reductions continued in the third quarter of 2025, though at a slightly slower pace. Based on second- and third-quarter earnings statements, the company’s employee count fell by 1,054 at the end of Q3, a 1% quarter-over-quarter decrease, compared with Q2’s 1.4% drop from Q1. Since introducing its dynamic shared ownership (DSO) model in January 2024, Bayer has let go of roughly 13,500 employees. CEO Bill Anderson indicated on Nov. 12 that future cuts will occur mainly through “incremental attrition,” with reductions in crop science to improve profitability.
AbbVie is ending its collaboration with Google’s Calico Life Sciences, resulting in layoffs affecting around 100 chemists. The company plans to redirect the funds toward biologics, cell, and RNA therapies. AbbVie and Calico first partnered in September 2014, each committing $250 million to focus on aging-related diseases, and later expanded the partnership in June 2018 with an additional $500 million each.
Merck is set to lay off 204 employees from its Rahway, New Jersey site, with terminations scheduled between Feb. 20 and May 11, 2026. This continues the company’s aggressive cost-saving initiatives, including a $3 billion campaign launched in July to support at least 20 upcoming product launches. While CEO Rob Davis described the effort as a reallocation of resources rather than straight cuts, Merck has also announced a global workforce reduction of approximately 6,000 jobs, abandoned plans for a $1.3 billion R&D center in London affecting 125 employees, and contributed to the nearly 23,300 biopharma industry layoffs in Q3, representing a 280% year-on-year increase.
Bristol Myers Squibb’s New Jersey workforce is facing another round of layoffs, this time affecting 110 employees at the Lawrence Township site, with terminations scheduled for February and March 2026. The pharma previously laid off 282 employees in September, with additional workforce reductions earlier in July, May and February. BMS is pursuing an aggressive cost-cutting initiative, first announced last April with a goal of saving $1.5 billion—largely through layoffs—resulting in approximately 2,200 job cuts in 2024. In February this year, BMS increased its savings target by another $2 billion, expected by 2027.
Months after being acquired by Sanofi, an undisclosed number of employees at Blueprint Medicines will be losing their jobs. A company spokesperson confirmed that a post-acquisition portfolio review led to a realignment effort impacting some staff. Sanofi stated affected employees will receive severance and support, though did not disclose the number of employees affected or whether layoffs have already occurred. Sanofi is also discontinuing certain pre-clinical programs while focusing on higher-value assets, including Blueprint’s elenestinib for systemic mastocytosis. Sanofi completed the $9.5 billion acquisition in June.
Gilead Sciences is cutting 17 employees at its Oceanside, California, site effective Jan. 16, according to a WARN notice. The site supports clinical manufacturing and process development for Gilead and Kite Pharma. Gilead has now laid off 53 people at Oceanside this year, following earlier cuts announced in June that affected 36 employees. The company also executed a separate May workforce reduction in Foster City, cutting 149 scientific and technical services staff. Altogether, Gilead has disclosed layoffs affecting 202 California employees this year.
Following a failed Phase I/II trial for its only clinical candidate, Korro Bio announced a strategic restructuring on Nov. 12, including layoffs affecting 34% of its workforce. With 87 employees as of Sept. 30, the cuts will impact roughly 30 people. The biotech is discontinuing KRRO-110 after it failed to produce adequate levels of the AAT protein in the REWRITE trial for alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency. Korro also laid off 20% of its staff in May to extend its cash runway, with the latest cuts expected to push funding into the second half of 2027.
Ventus Therapeutics is implementing another round of layoffs—its second this year—as it adjusts its workforce to better align with company needs. The number of affected employees was not disclosed. The biotech, which develops small molecule therapies for immunological, inflammatory and neurological disorders, also laid off staff in July while preparing to advance two programs through Phase II testing.
nChroma Bio is laying off an undisclosed number of employees as it shifts pipeline priorities, according to a Nov. 12 report. The company will now focus on CRMA-1001, an epigenetic therapy in clinical trial application-enabling studies for chronic hepatitis B. At the 2025 AASLD meeting, nChroma presented preclinical data showing robust viral marker suppression and compatibility with standard-of-care therapies. First-in-human studies for CRMA-1001 are planned for early next year.
Metagenomi has laid off 25% of its workforce, leaving the company with 124 employees, according to an SEC filing. The restructuring aims to prioritize the hemophilia A program MGX-001 and extend the cash runway. Announced Nov. 11, the strategic shift also includes the departure of CEO Brian Thomas, who will remain on the board. Former COO Jian Irish has assumed the role of president and CEO.
Kezar Life Sciences is eliminating about 70% of its workforce—31 employees—after failing to resolve regulatory issues with the FDA regarding its autoimmune hepatitis drug zetomipzomib. The layoffs, disclosed in a Nov. 10 SEC filing, will cost the company approximately $6 million in one-time charges for the fourth quarter. Kezar had previously announced in October that layoffs were likely after the FDA canceled a planned Type C meeting needed to advance the program.
Catalent is again cutting its Maryland gene therapy workforce, this time axing 77 employees, including 61 in Harmans and 14 in Baltimore, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act notice. The Tampa, Florida–based contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) is laying off staff due to continued issues in demand from a “l(fā)arge commercial customer,” Endpoints News reported. Catalent’s cuts are effective Jan. 5.
This is the company’s second round of layoffs in Maryland in 2025. According to an August WARN notice, the CDMO also let go of 353 employees—including 316 in Harmans and 32 in Baltimore—effective last month. The total cuts disclosed this year for Maryland is now 430 people.
Endpoints News reported that the earlier workforce reduction was due to an expected shift in demand from an unidentified customer, adding that one of Catalent’s large Baltimore facility customers is Sarepta Therapeutics, which had faced recent challenges. The Cambridge, Massachusetts–based biotech in July announced it was letting go of about 500 employees following a strategic review. That news came soon after two deaths were linked to Sarepta’s Duchenne muscular dystrophy treatment Elevidys.
T cell therapy biotech TScan Therapeutics is conducting a 30% workforce reduction and refocusing its pipeline in an effort to extend its cash runway into the second half of 2027. After receiving feedback from the FDA, TScan is preparing a pivotal study for acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndromes treatment TSC-101. In order to fund that trial, the company is pausing enrollment of a Phase I solid tumor trial and focusing preclinical efforts on in vivo-engineered T cell receptor-engineered T cell therapies for solid tumors and on target discovery for autoimmunity, according to a Nov. 3 release. This means that about 66 employees are headed out the door. TScan expects about $45 million in savings in 2026 and 2027 from the changes.
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