Marriott International this week informed its employees of a major restructuring that could result in hundreds of employees leaving the company.
The cuts are global in nature and affect positions “above ownership”, which are for people at the corporate level and not those working in hotels, according to a Skift report.
Some employees have been offered the option of early retirement in the third quarter, while others whose positions are being eliminated will be able to apply for other jobs at Marriott. This applies only to internal candidates, according to sources cited by Skift.
The company, based in Bethesda, Maryland, has submitted WARN (Work Adjustment and Retraining Notices) to the state regarding the layoffs. However, the state has not yet posted the notice online.
The hotel giant revealed on November 4, when it announced its third quarter results, that there would be a major organizational restructuring.
A company spokesman declined to specify the total number of workers to be laid off or answer questions about the Skift report. However, he did provide a statement, which read: “Earlier this year, we launched a strategic review of all aspects of Marriott International’s operations, across all geographies, to enhance the effectiveness of our business across the board and discussed this initiative in our third quarter earnings release. While always challenging, these job reductions in our corporate and continental offices will reshape the way we work and are expected to be largely implemented in the first quarter of 2025.”
In recent days, an online forum on Reddit involving Marriott employees has speculated about the cuts, while a portion of employees took to TikTok to talk about the layoffs.
Cutbacks at Marriott
The company’s management said on Nov. 4 that it aims to save $80 million to $90 million annually as part of a restructuring initiative that includes one-time costs and focuses on achieving efficiencies at the enterprise level to support future growth.
“This initiative is expected to result in approximately $100 million of costs, primarily in the fourth quarter of 2024,” said Leeny Oberg, chief financial officer at Marriott, referring to “employee severance benefits.”
Affected employees will be entitled to compensation packages (varying according to position and length of service), which include job search assistance.
If Marriott eliminates a job, any affected associate, as the company calls its employees, can apply for new positions, which will open first to internal candidates, according to a source cited by Skift.
Apparently unrelated, as of Thursday, the company had dozens of vacancies on its career pages in the US and Europe. For example, it was advertising about 50 open positions in its corporate offices in Bethesda.
