Round Rock-Based Dell Technologies Confirms Post-Merger Layoffs Are Imminent

ROUND ROCK, TX -- On the heels of its massive merger finalized last month, Dell Technologies confirmed Friday that it would lay off employees to eliminate staffing redundancies.

As previously reported by Patch, Round Rock-based Dell Inc. finalized its mega-merger with EMC Corp. in early September -- a $60 billion transaction that represents the largest technology merger in the history of mankind that rebranded the combined titans as Dell Technologies. Almost immediately, analysts predicted layoffs ranging from 2,000 to 3,000 workers would be imminent at the bolstered Dell Technologies.

They were right about the layoffs. But in a prepared statement confirming imminent furloughs provided to the Austin American-Statesman, company officials didn't detail the scope of the upcoming worker displacement.

In blunt, matter-of-fact terms, the company told the newspaper the number was immaterial to a company of its massive size, this as workers brace to queue up to the unemployment line or brush up their resumes in searching for work.

"The number is not material to Dell Technologies’ headcount of approximately 140,000," Dell Technologies officials told the Statesman in a prepared statement. "As is common with mergers of this size, there is a need to manage some overlapping job functions. We hope to minimize the impact on jobs and expect that revenue gains will outweigh resulting cost savings, with revenue growth driving future employment."

Company officials didn't disclose where the layoffs might occur, but said they weren't limited to the Hopkinton, Mass.-based headquarters of Dell EMC. Officials wouldn't even hint at the number of likely layoffs at the Round Rock base just north of Austin.

While Dell is also secretive about the exact number of its Central Texas employees, the Statesman figures the count to be around 13,000 regionally, making the company one of the top private employers in the area.

Typically, Wall Street reacts favorably to layoffs -- seen as a streamlining favorable to shareholders' interests. At midday Friday, Dell Technologies trading trading on the New York Stock Exchange was virtually unchanged at $48.17 per share, a negligible drop of 0.22 percent from the previous day's trading. The stock has traded steadily of late, with the 52-week low at $42.02 and the high at $50.89.

>>> Read the full story at Austin American-Statesman

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