Report: Advil and Sensodyne maker Haleon to cut ‘potentially thousands’ of jobs

Roughly a year after being spun off from pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Haleon is reportedly planning deep job cuts.

According to The Guardian, the company behind major brands, including Advil and Sensodyne toothpaste, intends to eliminate hundreds of roles in the U.K. and potentially thousands worldwide.

“We’ve announced internally a number of changes to our global business this week, as we continue to evolve Haleon into a more agile organization,” a spokesperson said in a statement.

“As we shared in March, this is part of a broader three-year program that will help drive increased productivity across the business, ensuring that Haleon continues to deliver for consumers over the long term.”

The consumer healthcare business began a consultation process on July 12. It’s expected to finish on Aug. 25.

The Guardian claims that laid-off staff are expected to leave the company in September.

Haleon employs a global workforce of more than 24,000 people, according to multiple news outlets.

Impact on Canadian staff

It remains unclear if Canadian employees will be affected by job cuts at Haleon.

According to LinkedIn, the company has more than 370 workers in the country.

Major layoffs continue

The Guardian’s report on sweeping layoffs at Haleon comes amid a flurry of staffing reductions in 2023.

Major North American companies, including Amazon, Microsoft, Rogers, Ritual, Lyft, Meta, and Suncor Energy, are cutting a substantial number of jobs as they continue to navigate challenging economic conditions.

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Termination agreements for Haleon employees

A Haleon spokesperson told The Guardian that the company is “fully committed” to supporting staff that are affected by the changes it’s making to its global business.

In Canada, non-unionized employees at the consumer healthcare business are owed full severance pay when they lose their jobs due to:

• Downsizing or corporate restructuring
• The closure of the business

This includes individuals working full-time, part-time, or hourly in Ontario, Alberta, and B.C.

People working “on contract” or as a contractor may also be owed severance pay — given that many non-unionized employees in Canada are often misclassified as independent contractors.

Severance can be as much as 24 months’ pay, depending on a variety of factors.

LEARN MORE
• Severance for provincially regulated employees
• Severance packages in mass layoffs
• GSK Layoffs and Severance Pay

WATCH: Employment lawyer Lior Samfiru explains why you are still owed severance if you have been downsized on an episode of the Employment Law Show.

Before you accept any severance offer, have an experienced employment lawyer at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP review it and your employment contract.

We can tell you if what you have been provided is fair and how to get proper severance if it falls short of what you are actually owed.

If you don’t receive the full amount, which happens often, you have been wrongfully dismissed and are entitled to compensation.

In some cases, employers pressure staff into accepting poor severance packages, such as imposing a deadline for accepting the offer.

Non-unionized employees in Canada have up to two years from the date of their dismissal to pursue a claim for full severance pay.