Novo Nordisk layoffs: Pharma major begins job cuts in US amid fierce weight-loss drug battle — Here's what we know

Novo Nordisk layoffs: Denmark-based pharmaceutical major Novo Nordisk has started job cuts in its US market. The staff who are set to be affected by the layoff will be notified between this week and the upcoming week, reported the news agency Reuters, citing an email and people aware of the development on Wednesday, 15 October 2025.

Novo Nordisk's potential layoffs come as the pharmaceutical major, which has developed the weight-loss drug Wegovy, seeks to reduce costs amid a fierce battle with Eli Lilly for the weight-loss drug market, according to the agency report.

According to the email cited in the news report, the pharma company's US layoff started on Tuesday and will continue into next week. The US job cuts come after the company's plans to cut nearly 5,000 jobs in its home market.

Novo Nordisk ADR shares on the NYSE dropped more than 1% during the intraday session on Wednesday to $56.10, compared to $56.76%. The shares are now trading 0.09% lower at $56.61 as of 2:04 p.m. (EDT), according to MarketWatch data.

Which teams will be affected?

The agency report cited a schedule that showed the job cuts are expected to affect human resources, clinical development, rare diseases, medical and regulatory, legal, ethics and compliance, marketing and sales, finance, public affairs, and other departments.

Even though the news agency was not able to confirm how many people were affected, the report highlighted that Novo is looking to cut 9,000 job roles from its global workforce as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mike Doustdar, executes a company-wide restructure.

The pharma company previously stated that the global process would take time and its “highest priority is to support our employees,” according to the agency report.

Novo Nordisk layoffs come as Doustdar is attempting to restore investor confidence with what he calls a tighter focus on commercial execution and on the obesity and diabetes therapeutic areas.