Toshiba Mulls Cutting 7,000 Jobs Globally

Japanese tech giant Toshiba is considering cutting down around 7,000 jobs, especially in its consumer electronics division, and also unload stakes in two of its subsidiaries to sort out its accounts.

The most affected division will be the lifestyle segment, with more than 24,000 workers in Japan and other countries and which currently accounts for most of the company's losses, officials said on Tuesday.

Sales in this segment fell 10 percent during the last financial year and its operational losses amounted to around $905 million (roughly Rs. 6,036 crores), EFE news reported.

Toshiba might also sell off its holdings in Toshiba Tec, dedicated to retail business solutions, and Toshiba Medical Systems, a wholly owned provider of diagnostic imaging systems.

Through these sales, the Tokyo-based company seeks to obtain more liquidity to carry out its restructuring plans for its appliance and television businesses following an accounting scandal.

After the scandal broke out earlier this year, Toshiba admitted that between 2007 and 2014 it overstated its sales profits by around $1.86 billion (roughly Rs. 12,408 crores) and its operating profits by $1.28 billion (roughly Rs. 8,538 crores).

The Toshiba accounting scandal has been described as the biggest financial fraud in Japan in recent years.

Japan's market watchdog said last week that scandal-hit Toshiba should be slapped with a record $60 million (roughly Rs. 400 crores) fine over a profit-padding scheme that hammered the reputation of one of Japan's best-known firms.

The Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission said it was calling for the JPY 7.37 billion penalty - its biggest ever - as it reportedly looks into possible criminal charges against former Toshiba executives. The country's Financial Services Agency must now approve the recommended fine over allegations that Toshiba lied about its finances in earlier stock exchange filings.

Written with agency inputs