Alexion Pharmaceuticals headquarters in New Haven photographed on Jan. 15, 2016.
NEW HAVEN >> Alexion Pharmaceuticals will lay off 210 employees in the coming weeks as part of restructuring that a spokeswoman said is necessary to support the company’s long-term plans.
The layoffs represent about 7 percent of Alexion’s 3,000 person global workforce, including some positions in Connecticut, said Kim Diamond, a company spokeswoman. Alexion also operates a manufacturing facility in Rhode Island and Diamond did not provide a breakout of how many of the layoffs would come from the company’s Connecticut operations.
Alexion, which makes drugs to treat rare diseases, announced the layoffs in an internal memo that was sent out Monday.
Diamond said the company was not breaking down the different job titles where the layoffs were being made.
News of the layoffs is the latest is a series of setbacks that Alexion has experienced since the company’s January 2016 return to New Haven after spending the previous 19 years headquartered in Cheshire.
• The subject of a lawsuit accusing the company of violating federal securities laws.
• Launched an internal investigation in some of its sales practices.
• Seen two of its top executives abruptly leave the company in December.
• Had its founder and chairman of the board Leonard Bell announce plans for his retirement in March.
When the company announced in 2012 that it was returning to New Haven, Alexion accepted incentives from the state as part of its First Five economic development program. First Five provides a package of incentives for participating companies that bring at lease 200 new full-time jobs to Connecticut.
The $51 million state deal with Alexion involves a 10-year loan of $20 million at a rate of 1 percent, with loan forgiveness of $16 million to $20 million if the jobs numbers are met. It also included a $6 million grant for lab construction and equipment as well as an Urban and Industrial Sites Reinvestment Tax Credit of up to $25 million.
Officials with the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development weren’t immediately available on Tuesday, amid state offices being closed due to a snowstorm, to comment on what impact that Alexion’s layoffs might have on the incentives the company is receiving.
David Cadden, a professor emeritus at Quinnipiac University’s School of Business, said this is not the first time a company that is part of the First Five program has undergone layoffs. Earlier this month, ESPN began a series of layoffs involving its on air talent.
Politics aside, the layoffs Alexion are likely to create a huge morale problem, Cadden said.
Late last year Alexion also announced it is working with the University of Connecticut to create a fund to support transitional research into rare disease, officials with the company and the school said.
Also late in 2016, Alexion announced a $100,000 grant aimed at helping the homeless find work and self-sufficiency.
Out of dozens of other proposals, Liberty Community Services won the competitive grant that aimed to help about 80 people over 16 months with temporary part-time work to help them earn money.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to clarify that the workforce numbers includes Alexion staff globally.