Procter & Gamble, the world’s largest consumer goods company, announced on Thursday that it will slash 7,000 jobs over the next two years — approximately 15 per cent of its non-manufacturing workforce — as part of a restructuring plan aimed at boosting productivity, cutting costs and what it described as an “increasingly challenging environment.”

The Cincinnati-based maker of Pampers diapers, Tide detergent, and Bounty paper towels shared the announcement at the Deutsche Bank Consumer Conference in Paris.

According to The Indian Express, company executives said the restructuring will also include exiting certain product categories and brands in selected markets.

P&G also plans to overhaul its supply chain and brand portfolio as it navigates global economic uncertainty and shifting consumer behaviour.

“Finally, there will be additional changes to ensure an even more agile, empowered and accountable organization design — making roles broader, teams smaller, work more fulfilling and more efficient, including leveraging digitization and automation,” the company said in a statement, as quoted by CBS News.

“This is not a new approach, rather an intentional acceleration of the current strategy... to win in the increasingly challenging environment in which we compete,” the statement continued.

CFO Andre Schulten emphasised the shift, stating, “We see more opportunities to make growth broader and teams smaller, making work more fulfilling, faster and more efficient, leveraging digitization and automation opportunities”, reported Investopedia.

The company employs 108,000 people globally. It has not specified which regions or work sites would be impacted by the layoffs.

The two-year plan coincides with a period of tightening consumer spending. Like other global consumer goods giants, including Unilever, P&G is bracing for reduced demand amid price increases and geopolitical instability.

Executives said they expect US tariffs to affect earnings by 3 to 4 cents per share in the fiscal fourth quarter.

The company, which imports raw materials, packaging and some finished products from China, is projecting a pre-tax headwind of about $600 million for fiscal 2026 if tariffs remain in effect.

President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs on key trading partners have unsettled global markets and raised fears of a recession in the US, P&G’s largest market.

A Reuters analysis has shown that Trump’s trade war has cost companies more than $34 billion in lost sales and higher costs — a figure that is expected to rise.

In its April earnings report, P&G reported net sales of $19.8 billion in Q3, down 2 per cent from the previous year.

The company attributed the slump to a difficult consumer and geopolitical environment. At the time, it also announced price hikes on selected products and said it was prepared to use every lever at its disposal to soften the blow from tariffs.

Workforce reductions are not unique to P&G.

“Companies are spending less, slowing hiring and sending layoff notices,” said Andrew Challenger, senior vice president of outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, in an email statement Thursday.

According to the firm, US job cuts rose 47 per cent in May compared to the same month last year.

Speaking at the conference, Schulten and P&G’s Chief Operating Officer Shailesh Jejurikar acknowledged that the current geopolitical landscape is “unpredictable” and consumers are grappling with “greater uncertainty.”