By Greg Gao

(JW Insights) Jul 3 -- It was reported that Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi laid off 30 employees over last one week and more could leave in its indian subsidiary. Xiaomi responded that that its decision is based on current market conditions and business forecasts, according to finance media outlet Yicai Global.

“We will continue to expand employee recruitment at the right time and place. To build a sustainable team, we ensure that our biannual performance management process rewards the best-performing employees while providing opportunities for improvement to underperforming employees within a reasonable timeframe. We also do not rule out the possibility of reasonable workforce optimization targeting employees who cannot meet the requirements,” said Xiaomi’s announcement.

Former and current employees of Xiaomi’s Indian subsidiary have revealed recently that the company’s workforce in India will be reduced to below 1,000 employees due to internal restructuring, declining market share, and increased scrutiny from Indian government agencies. At the beginning of 2023, Xiaomi India employed approximately 1,400 to 1,500 employees, but in the past week alone, around 30 employees have been laid off, with more layoffs expected in the coming months.

In the first quarter of 2023, Xiaomi’s smartphone shipments in India decreased from 7 to 8 million units a year ago to 5 million units, causing the company to drop to the third position behind Samsung and Vivo after holding the top spot with a 16% market share for 20 consecutive quarters.

In addition to the decline in shipments, Xiaomi India is also facing various business challenges, including a cash shortage caused by the Indian enforcement agency’s seizure of over 55 billion INR in bank assets on allegations of illegal remittances abroad, according to earlier media reports.