Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) is cutting the headcount in its cardiac and vascular device divisions, including up to 100 individuals from its Santa Rosa, Calif.-based facilities that faced a devastating wildfire last year, according to a number of recent reports.
The Fridley, Minn.-based medtech giant has not yet released the total number of jobs that will be affected by the cuts, which the company claims are necessary to keep the company competitive, according to a Minneapolis Star Tribune report.
The corporate-efficiency program includes the elimination of up to 100 jobs at its Santa Rosa, Calif.-based facilities, according to a recent Press Democrat report.
Employees in Santa Rosa, which was hit by a devastating wildfire in October 2017, were told there would be between 85 and 100 cuts to help the company “remain competitive,” according to the Press Democrat report, which came from a source that wanted to remain anonymous to avoid jeopardizing future employment.
“There were people who were crying and really upset. People that have worked there for 20 years got laid off. My whole department is gone. Certain people kept their jobs, but the department as a whole doesn’t exist anymore,” the source said, according to the report.
The company currently employs over 1,000 employees in the Sonoma County area, including two facilities in Santa Rosa, and is one of the largest employers in the region, according to the reports.
A Medtronic spokesperson told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that cuts would be spread across various locations and job responsibilities, but declined to provide a total number.
The Star Tribune estimates that the number being cut in Minnesota is small enough that it would not trigger a requirement to notify state officials. The company did say it plans to cut jobs in Peoria, Ill., Portsmouth, N.H. and Columbia Heights, Minn., according to the report.
Earlier this month, Medtronic said that it won pre-market approval from the FDA for the CareLink SmartSync device manager for use with its cardiac rhythm management devices.
