Nike Layoffs: Jobs being cut following return-to-office update

According to reports and social media posts, Nike has quietly laid off an undisclosed number of employees over the past several weeks.

The reduction comes after the sportswear giant recently announced that staff will be required to work from their respective offices at least four days a week in January — up from just three this year.

What’s happening at Nike?

News outlets, including The Oregonian, claim that Nike has cut jobs in a variety of divisions, including:

• Human Resources (HR)
• Recruitment
• Engineering
• Digital products
• Innovation

Lissa Steele, a senior project manager at the company, said in a recent LinkedIn post that it had been “a [heck] of a week here in tech at Nike.”

“As many know, our product organization went through a [reorganization] and with that came layoffs, role changes, a lot of stress, and not a lot of work done,” Steele wrote.

“I’m grateful for the people that reached out to me to make sure I was ok and to let me know they were thinking about me in this time. Some of those people were laid off, and in this stressful time, their first thought was to console others to ensure they were ok.”

In an email to staff on Dec. 6 that was obtained by The Oregonian, Nike outlined a number of executive changes designed to accelerate decision-making and how it meets the needs of consumers.

At the end of May, the company employed a global workforce of approximately 83,700 people, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Nike layoffs in Canada

It remains unclear if Canadian employees at Nike are affected by the recent reductions.

According to the company’s LinkedIn page, it has more than 1,100 workers in the country.

Termination agreements for Nike Canada employees

In Canada, non-unionized employees at Nike are owed full severance pay when they lose their jobs due to downsizing, corporate restructuring, or 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 employees in Canada are often misclassified as independent contractors.

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

WATCH: Employment lawyer Lior Samfiru explains what rights employees have if they are being fired or let go 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.

If you don’t receive the correct amount, which happens often, you have been wrongfully dismissed and should take legal action.

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

LEARN MORE
• Rights to severance for provincially regulated employees
• Severance packages during mass layoffs
• Severance entitlements in a recession

Major layoffs continue

The reported job cuts at Nike come amid a flurry of layoffs in 2023.

Other major employers, including Spotify, RBC, TD Bank, Broadcom, Amazon, AbCellera, Unity, Canadian Tire, PwC, Maersk, Nokia, and Ubisoft, have significantly scaled back their staffing levels as they continue to navigate challenging economic conditions.

SEE ALSO
• Firm launches $130M class action against Shopify for breach of contract
• Panera laying off 17% of corporate staff ahead of IPO
• Where are layoffs happening in Canada?

Lost your job? Talk to an employment lawyer

If you have been fired or let go for any reason, contact the experienced employment law team at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP.

Our lawyers in Ontario, Alberta, and B.C. have successfully represented tens of thousands of non-unionized individuals.

In addition to severance package negotiations, we can assist you on a broad range of employment matters, including:

If you are a non-unionized employee who needs help with a workplace issue, contact us or call 1-855-821-5900 to get the advice you need and the compensation you deserve.