Inside Novo Nordisk's 'Club 5,000' as Danish staff cuts gain pace

By Maggie Fick, Soren Jeppesen and Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen

LONDON/COPENHAGEN (Reuters) -Romel Amineh is one of a fast-growing group of Novo Nordisk workers in Denmark laid off as the drugmaker battles to cut costs and revive its fortunes in a fiercely competitive global obesity drug market. They call themselves the "Club 5,000".

The company is racing ahead with job cuts in its home market in areas from manufacturing and research to IT and quality control, according to eight sources interviewed by Reuters and an analysis of hundreds of social media posts.

The pace of layoffs, which the company says will impact 5,000 jobs in Denmark, underscores the pressure on new CEO Mike Doustdar to quickly turn around Novo's fortunes and reduce costs in its obesity drug battle with Eli Lilly.

'CLUB 5,000' MEMBERS ORGANISE DRINKS, SHARE JOB TIPS

The affected departments have not previously been disclosed and Reuters' report gives the most in-depth look so far inside the mass layoffs - key for Novo's prospects, but a blow for thousands of local and global staff and Denmark's economy.

Powered by blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy, launched in 2021, Novo became Europe's most valuable company with a market capitalisation that exceeded Denmark's entire economic output.

But competition from Eli Lilly's Mounjaro and a growing number of copycats have slowed Wegovy's growth, and Novo's share price has slumped more than 60% from its peak, prompting the ousting of its long-time CEO and the restructuring drive.

Since the cuts were announced by Doustdar on September 10, hundreds of Novo staff in Denmark have joined the unofficial Club 5,000 community online. The hashtag is used for everything from sharing job leads to organising drinks and group walks.

"People have a connection through the culture that has been there at Novo Nordisk," said Amineh, who was laid off this month from his IT role for clinical trials. He created a LinkedIn group for fired Novo workers on Friday.

By Tuesday, it had over 1,000 members.

JOB CUTS AIMED TO BE COMPLETED BY 'POTATO WEEK' HOLIDAY

Three Novo sources - two laid off, one still at the firm - and two others briefed by employees said the company was aiming to complete the bulk of layoffs by "potato week" - this week's autumn school holiday. The timeline was presented to staff in a town hall last month. Two of the Novo sources said some layoffs could slip into November.

The pace and scale of the cuts - Novo is shedding 9,000 of its near 79,000 global workforce, roughly 34,000 of whom are in Denmark - has raised concerns that the company could find its operations strained by lower staff numbers.

"The ones left behind are really going to have a hard time," said one scientist who lost his job. He added, though, that severance packages had been generous.

Another laid-off worker described the selection process as opaque. The Danish Society of Engineers, which represents many Novo production staff, told Reuters that nearly 500 members had joined its meetings since the layoffs were announced. The union echoed the fact that Novo had offered generous severance.

Novo, whose shares have risen since the layoffs were announced, said that "the process takes time, and our highest priority is to support our employees." It declined to comment further on specific findings by Reuters.

NOVO LOOKS TO PROTECT PROFITABILITY

A review of nearly 300 LinkedIn posts by Denmark-based employees showed dismissals have gained pace in the last two weeks, with spikes in job-loss announcements on September 30 and October 7.

Doustdar, who took over in August, said when unveiling the plan "the faster the better" within legal and ethical limits.

"The speed of the layoffs points to Novo trying to protect profitability," said Gareth Powell, head of healthcare at London-based Polar Capital.

The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, said the cuts had also hit teams in sustainability, finance and business support, as well as blue-collar jobs in key plants at Kalundborg and Hillerod.

One Hillerod worker said there were major cuts in packaging teams preparing new lines for Wegovy and diabetes drug Ozempic, both due to ramp up in 2026.

Another laid-off staffer familiar with Hillerod and Kalundborg said cuts in quality assurance, warehouse and line operations could strain capacity during upcoming expansions.

"We're not making bicycles. This is highly regulated and requires many quality assurance staff for new production," the person said. The person acknowledged that management may have a reorganisation plan to offset lower staff numbers.

'IT'S A NEW CORPORATE ETHOS'

Novo staff got wind of the layoffs in August, said one laid-off worker, who added that people had felt in "limbo" since.

The union said the layoff process was agreed between management and internal "member clubs", which act almost like staff unions. A handful of members accepted demotions to stay at Novo, it said, but were given only 24 hours to decide.

One Copenhagen-based employee who managed manufacturing compliance documents said about 85% of his team was dismissed. Others acknowledged Novo needed to slim down after its rapid expansion.

A sustainability manager posted on LinkedIn that the layoffs marked a shift in strategy and a tougher approach.

"It's a new corporate ethos," the person wrote.

(Reporting by Maggie Fick in London and Soren Jeppesen and Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen in Copenhagen. Additional reporting by Stine Jacobsen in Copenhagen. Editing by Adam Jourdan and Mark Potter)