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Microsoft Offers Voluntary Exit to 60,000 Employees
Microsoft has offered around 60,000 employees the chance to leave immediately in exchange for severance pay. A huge figure that represents more than a quarter of its workforce. Who is affected? Here's what you need to know.
On October 26, 2026, Amy Coleman, Microsoft’s Chief Human Resources Officer, announced to employees the launch of a new program called Voluntary Exit Offer (VEO). And it does not look good, because this is a real voluntary departure plan implemented by Microsoft (and presented on this page).
Eligible employees can therefore leave the company of their own free will, with financial support and resources to prepare for the next step in their careers. "This offer gives eligible employees who may be considering a future outside the company a new choice: make that transition now, with support.", Amy Coleman wrote.
The figure of 60,000 is not insignificant, but it should not be misread. Relative to the 223,000 full-time employees reported at the end of June 2026, this represents about 27% of the workforce. However, 60,000 eligible employees does not mean 60,000 departures. How many will accept?
Who is eligible for this voluntary exit offer?
The program is far from affecting all Microsoft employees; it depends in particular on their geographic location.
- Countries: only the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and India. France is not among the countries mentioned.
- Hierarchy level: employees at level 70 and below on Microsoft’s internal scale. According to GeekWire, this includes general managers and some vice presidents, but not corporate vice presidents.
- Teams: only participating organizations are affected. "Some organizations are offering the Voluntary Exit Offer, and others are not", Amy Coleman said. According to the U.S. press, Copilot, CoreAI, Windows, Xbox, finance, and HR teams would be affected, while some sales, marketing, and engineering teams would be excluded.
In any case, employees have until the beginning of December to decide, with an effective departure at the end of 2026.
As for the terms, Microsoft does not discuss them in its article published on its blog. According to GeekWire, the package offered is equivalent to Microsoft’s standard severance pay, with continued stock vesting for six or twelve months depending on seniority, and health coverage for a set period.
Microsoft keeps cutting back, again and again
Last April, Microsoft launched its very first program of this kind, reserved for around 8,750 U.S. employees. About 30% of them accepted. In July, the Redmond company eliminated around 4,800 jobs, mainly at Xbox. And in 2025, more than 15,000 jobs had already been cut. So 60,000 people may decide to leave Microsoft, but how many will actually do so? Hard to say, but in the end it could amount to fewer than 10,000 people.
On the financial side, two days after the announcement, Microsoft published its fiscal 2027 first-quarter results: $92.3 billion in revenue, up 19%. According to CNBC, Azure is up 48% and capital expenditures reached $45.2 billion for the quarter, driven by AI infrastructure. During the earnings presentation, Microsoft said its cost guidance includes an estimate related to this exit offer. However, Microsoft is not drawing a direct link between this employee initiative and its AI investments.
Updates to Microsoft products are already not exactly reassuring, so let’s hope the technical teams are spared from all this... Otherwise, it will only deepen users’ concerns about Windows and other Microsoft products.
