Pfizer to cut about 150 jobs in Michigan as part of manufacturing cost-saving plan
Key Facts
Pfizer plans to cut about 150 jobs at its major facility in Portage, Michigan, as part of moves affecting other manufacturing sites in the United States and Italy, according to a Fierce Pharma report. The company confirmed the layoffs but did not specify the exact number of jobs affected at its Rocky Mount and Sanford facilities in North Carolina. The report links the cuts to the company's broader efforts to reduce costs and improve manufacturing efficiency. This comes as Pfizer announced an additional $2.5 billion in expected productivity savings, to be realized between 2027 and 2029. The timeline places the current cuts within a program whose expected financial impact extends into subsequent years.
Pfizer said it regularly reviews its manufacturing network to ensure capacity is used in line with patient needs, expected product demand and long-term business goals. The company described the review as an ongoing network-management process, without linking the cuts in its published statement to a specific change in its drug portfolio or clinical trials. The report did not disclose the number of jobs at the North Carolina facilities or specify when cuts there would be implemented. This means the disclosed employment impact remains partial, with the only clear figure being about 150 jobs in Portage. In the company's wording, the review is tied to capacity, demand and long-term goals.
In its second-quarter results filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Pfizer raised its estimate for cumulative net savings from its cost-base alignment program to about $6.7 billion through 2029. It also forecast about $3 billion in net savings from its manufacturing optimization program through the same year. In addition, it announced $2.5 billion in additional productivity savings tied to ongoing initiatives, expected to be realized between 2027 and 2029. These figures show that the savings plan combines the cost-base alignment program, the manufacturing program and other productivity initiatives, with implementation extending beyond the current job cuts. The report did not specify how much the job cuts would contribute to each savings target.
In Italy, the Ministry of Industry said further talks between Pfizer, unions and the ministry are scheduled for November 10. The date is part of follow-up on the cuts reported at the company's sites, while the source itself provided no overall figure combining affected jobs in Italy and the United States. The upcoming talks will allow the parties to discuss next steps concerning the Italian sites, Reuters reported, citing the ministry. In the United States, Pfizer has not disclosed the exact number of jobs at its two North Carolina sites. The specific figure in the report remains limited to about 150 jobs at the Portage facility.
In the context of its pharmaceutical business, Chief Executive Albert Bourla said marketed and acquired products had performed strongly and that the company's obesity program was advancing with momentum, while its oncology portfolio remained a source of strength. Pfizer included data readouts for two candidates in chronic weight management among its expected 2026 catalysts. The list includes a Phase 2b readout for berobenatide for chronic weight management and a Phase 1/2 readout for a combination of the drug with an amylin analog. Bourla said, "Our obesity program is advancing with meaningful momentum, and our oncology portfolio remains a source of strength." The catalysts announcement did not link these readouts to the job cuts, while Pfizer shares closed at $29.8 on October 27, 2026, according to EL7 data.