Takeda’s layoffs include cutting 247 people in Massachusetts. The workforce reduction is meant to help offset investments in areas including a product launch for oral drug candidate zasocitinib, for which the pharma today announced positive Phase 3 data.
The workforce impact of Takeda’s recently announced reorganization has become clearer. The Japan-based pharma estimates the restructuring will affect around 634 U.S. employees, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act notice.
Takeda began notifying employees on March 25, the same day it announced a business transformation, which includes streamlining corporate functions. However, the company noted in the WARN notice that the total number affected could change as staff pursue and accept redeployment opportunities across its global network.
Takeda’s cuts include 247 employees in Cambridge, Massachusetts, effective July 1, 2026, through Dec. 31, 2027. To understand where other layoffs will take place, BioSpace has requested a copy of a document mentioned in the WARN notice that lists the number of individuals affected by state.
In last week’s announcement, Takeda noted that the restructuring, which includes “strategically prioritizing resources,” is expected to save more than 200 billion yen—about $1.25 billion—by fiscal year 2028. The company explained that the savings will offset investments needed to prepare for multiple launches, including oveporexton, usfertide and zasocitinib; progress the late-stage pipeline; and support strategic technology investments.
Takeda announced today promising data for zasocitinib, an oral tyrosine kinase 2 (TYK2) inhibitor, in adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. In the Phase 3 Latitude PsO 3001 and 3002 studies, more than half of patients treated with the drug candidate achieved clear or almost clear skin at week 16, a key measure of treatment success, according to the pharma. Zasocitinib also demonstrated statistically significant improvements in complete skin clearance. Takeda expects to submit a new drug application for zasocitinib in fiscal year 2026.
The pharma acquired zasocitinib from Nimbus Therapeutics for $4 billion at the end of 2022 to challenge Bristol Myers Squibb’s kinase inhibitor Sotyktu. Takeda in December 2025 reported positive results from the Phase 3 LATITUDE studies, noting that when compared with placebo and Amgen’s Otezla, about 30% of treated patients achieved completely clear skin, or a score of 100 on the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI).
The company’s latest layoffs join a series of cuts from the past two years. Takeda let go of nearly 1,500 employees in the U.S. and Austria in 2024 and early 2025 and 137 in October 2025. In January, news broke that 243 people would be laid off across its U.S. operations.
