New Delhi

US chipmaker Qualcomm has started laying off employees in India as part of a global workforce restructuring exercise that could affect around 1,000 employees, or nearly 5-6 per cent of its workforce in the country, according to reports.

The layoffs reportedly began at its Bengaluru operations, primarily affecting senior engineers and employees with several years of experience. The exercise is expected to extend to its engineering and research centres in Hyderabad, Delhi-NCR and Chennai.

Affected employees have reportedly been offered severance equivalent to three months' salary, with additional compensation linked to their tenure. Those signing exit documents within three days have also reportedly been offered an additional month's salary. Qualcomm has not publicly confirmed these arrangements.

Chief executive Cristiano Amon announced a global workforce restructuring on October 20, following the company's annual performance review. Qualcomm described the exercise as performance-focused and aimed at strengthening accountability and aligning its workforce with changing business priorities.

However, the reported cuts among experienced Indian engineers have raised questions about whether the exercise also involves organisational rationalisation and cost reduction.

Employees could be assessed on individual performance ratings, team-level evaluations and senior management feedback. Radio frequency, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and global navigation satellite system engineering teams may also face reductions, reports said.

Qualcomm's traditional smartphone business is facing pressure as the company expands into AI, automotive technologies, connected devices and data-centre semiconductors.