Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE:BUD), owner of beer brands Budweiser and Bud Light, is laying off over 2% of its total workforce, with the cuts largely focused on corporate staff in the US.
Drivers, salespeople, and staff working in breweries and warehouses are not expected to be affected by the job cuts, CNN reported.
The decision to axe around 380 workers was made to “simplify and reduce layers”, the Belgian group explained.
In April, AB InBev found itself in the midst of a political battle after Bud Light launched a marketing campaign with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, which saw the TikTok star receive a personalised beer can with her face on.
Mulvaney and Bud Light received anti-trans backlash because of the ad, and when the brewing firm failed to defend the influencer, advocates from the LGBTQ+ community began to criticise the company too.
Bud Light sales were dampened by the controversy and a month later it lost its crown as America’s top-selling beer to Modelo for the first time in over two decades.
Brendan Whitworth, chief executive officer at the Euronext-listed group, said: “Today we took the very difficult but necessary decision to eliminate a number of positions across our corporate organization.
“While we never take these decisions lightly, we want to ensure that our organization continues to be set for future long-term success.”
Shares in AB InBev are trading 0.7% higher on Thursday, having opened at a little over 53p.