Enterprise Minister Peter Burke confirms TikTok will cut Irish workforce in April

Enterprise, tourism and employment minister Peter Burke said on Thursday the Government said it is working to assist employees facing redundancy at TikTok's Irish operations

The Government said it is working to assist employees facing redundancy at TikTok's Irish operations, after the social media giant confirmed it plans to reduce its Irish workforce next month.  

TikTok employs around 3,000 people in Ireland and up to 300 employees are thought to be affected by the workforce cuts. Enterprise, tourism and employment Minister Peter Burke said on Thursday his department will liaise with affected workers and that there may be opportunities for redeployment for some employees.

“My Department, along with our agencies, will work to support workers affected in the period ahead as they pursue alternative employment. TikTok is a significant employer in Ireland and as part of the proposed restructuring, Government understands that there may be a number of open roles available to employees who are at risk of being made redundant. TikTok has been fully briefed on the IDA’s suite of transformation and training supports available," said Mr Burke.

TikTok which is owned by Chinese technology giant Bytedance announced in February plans for global restructuring. Mr Burke said the numbers of employees affected in its Irish operation "are a matter for the company to disclose".

“My first thoughts are with the employees impacted by this announcement along with their families," he said. 

Mr Burke said the enterprise agencies in his department will assist in helping those impacted to find alternative employment. "This includes sharing the skills profiles of impacted employees to companies who may be hiring, be that with multinationals in IDA’s client base or indigenous companies through Enterprise Ireland.

"As a country we are close to full employment and the economy is well diversified, with hundreds of thousands of people employed by indigenous SMEs, pharmaceuticals, agri-food, med-tech and financial services. Nonetheless I know this announcement will be very difficult for those impacted and Government is fully committed to supporting affected staff."

TikTok’s parent company ByteDance employs around 110,000 people globally and has had a presence in Ireland for five years.