Microsoft offers voluntary buyouts to 60,000 employees globally

Microsoft has offered voluntary buyouts to around 60,000 employees in the United States, Canada, India, and the United Kingdom. The company announced the programme on Monday. Workers at vice president level and below can apply, which is more than a quarter of Microsoft's total workforce. Teams working on AI products, Copilot, Xbox, and Windows are included. Employees in sales, security, and marketing cannot take part. The package offers benefits similar to standard severance pay. Microsoft has already cut nearly 5,000 jobs this year and ran a smaller voluntary retirement scheme in April. The company has been spending heavily on data centres to support its growing AI services, and the buyout programme helps it reduce costs while moving money toward those investments.