Samsung Electronics America filed a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification with the New Jersey Department of Labor affecting 739 positions at its Englewood Cliffs headquarters, effective September 30, 2026. The filing landed ten months after the company celebrated the grand opening of that facility with then Acting Gov. Tahesha Way, Senator Andy Kim, Representative Rob Menendez, Assemblywoman Ellen Park, and Mayor Mark Park in attendance.


The WARN filing, disclosed by Reuters on July 18, arrives as Samsung's consumer electronics division, which includes the Englewood Cliffs headquarters, is eliminating appliance production lines and restructuring its China business after market share there collapsed. Analysts estimated the appliance and TV sub-divisions posted a 600 billion won operating loss in the fourth quarter of 2025 on 14.8 trillion won in revenue.


Kim Cheol-gi, head of the Digital Appliance Business division, told employees in April 2026 that "this year is the last golden time to innovate the structure of the appliance business," according to Korea JoongAng Daily.


Samsung is outsourcing dishwasher and microwave production, reviewing closure of its Malaysia plant, which opened in 1989, and restructuring its China business. The company's TV market share in China has collapsed to 3.6 percent, with refrigerator and washing machine shares below one percent.


As the consumer electronics division shrinks, Samsung's semiconductor arm is expanding in Taylor, Texas. The same Samsung Electronics Co. board oversees both divisions — the consumer electronics cuts led by co-CEO Roh Tae-moon, the Taylor expansion led by co-CEO Jun Young-hyun. Samsung is building a new fabrication facility in Taylor, expected to begin production in 2026 with roughly 1,500 permanent employees and an additional 1,500 vendor engineers on-site during the setup phase. Samsung is actively hiring a Director of Texas Government Relations — among its highest-paying open positions — to manage relationships with Texas officials on incentives, utilities, water, and energy.


According to Reuters, which reviewed internal documents, Samsung's June 30 memo told employees the company was carrying out an "enterprise-wide reduction-in-force" with a "significant number of impacts." Samsung's public statement, as reported by NJBIZ, called the move a "relocation" to "strengthen alignment across teams and offices." Reuters quoted Samsung saying the move would build "stronger collaboration" and "optimize the organization by bringing more teams together within a growing technology and AI ecosystem." The WARN filing, which is publicly accessible and legally mandated, lists 739 positions affected effective September 30.


Samsung celebrated the grand opening of its Englewood Cliffs facility on September 22, 2025, after moving from Ridgefield Park, where it had maintained a presence since 1992. At the ceremony, Samsung reported 1,200 employees across five New Jersey locations. Congressman Josh Gottheimer, who cited his support for the CHIPS and Science Act, celebrated the opening as a testament to the region's strength. The CHIPS Act funding Gottheimer supported went to Samsung's semiconductor fabrication plant in Taylor, Texas — a separate division from the consumer electronics headquarters in Englewood Cliffs. Samsung's Taylor fab was awarded up to $4.745 billion in direct CHIPS Act funding in December 2024, contingent on meeting investment and hiring milestones.


The 739 positions represent the majority of the Englewood Cliffs headquarters workforce. Samsung stated that "most affected employees" received relocation offers to its existing Plano, Texas campus, but declined to define "most" or specify acceptance rates. Roughly 100 workers at the Plano office also lost jobs, including mobile division employees based there, according to a person who told Reuters they were among those laid off — a figure Samsung has not officially confirmed. Reuters reviewed more than 30 LinkedIn posts from employees who said they had been laid off or had left.


The divisional split does not explain all the Bergen County cuts. Samsung SDS America, an IT services subsidiary also controlled by Samsung Group, filed a separate WARN notice in June affecting 179 positions at Ridgefield Park, effective October 1, 2026 — one day after the SEA filing's September 30 effective date. Samsung stated this was "unrelated to layoffs or restructuring" — a claim that sits awkwardly beside the WARN filing, which legally mandates disclosure of mass layoffs or plant closings. The company did not disclose where the SDS North American headquarters is relocating. Combined, the two filings affect 918 total positions in Bergen County — a figure calculated from the two WARN notices.


Republican legislators and business groups have seized on the departure to criticize New Jersey's corporate tax policy. Assemblyman John Azzariti, a Republican whose district includes parts of Bergen County, said in June that "Texas didn't win Samsung by accident. They won because they have spent years creating an environment where businesses want to invest, grow and create jobs." Michele Siekerka, president and CEO of the New Jersey Business & Industry Association, called the departure "not surprising, but it is no less sad" and cited the state's 11.5 percent corporate tax rate. Samsung has maintained the move is about "strengthening alignment across teams and offices," not about New Jersey's tax policy.


While state Republicans attacked tax policy, the mayor of Englewood Cliffs focused on retaining the property's value. Mayor Mark Park, whose administration approved Samsung's permits in less than one week and added a bus stop at the company's request, said the departure "appears to be driven by considerations that extend beyond any single municipality." He said Englewood Cliffs "continues to offer an exceptional environment for business" and that the campus "remains one of the premier office locations in the region."


The campus faces its second anchor vacancy since early 2025, when Unilever left for Hoboken and Samsung backfilled the space. Mesirow Financial, a Chicago-based investment firm, purchased the property for $102 million in 2017. The property was projected to contribute $720,338.14 in property taxes in 2026, according to NorthJersey.com citing public records. Englewood Cliffs approved Samsung's permits in less than one week and added a bus stop at the company's request. Those moves now look different after two anchor tenants left in eighteen months.


Samsung has not disclosed severance terms, the exact number of employees who accepted relocation offers, or the specific job functions affected. The company told NJBIZ it would "provide support to those affected" — a promise that carries no detail ten weeks before the WARN effective date of September 30, 2026. What happens to the 700 Sylvan Avenue property and the projected property tax revenue remains unanswered. The 918 positions, per the WARN filings, are scheduled for elimination by October 1.


The bus stop Englewood Cliffs installed for Samsung workers still stands. No one has said who will use it next.


Sources

  • New Jersey Department of Labor, 2026 WARN Notice Archive (July 2026)
  • Reuters, "Samsung Electronics America to reduce workforce by 739 in New Jersey" (July 18, 2026)
  • Congressman Josh Gottheimer, Press Release (September 22, 2025)
  • Samsung Semiconductor, Official Website (accessed July 2026)
  • KED Global, "Samsung Electronics reshuffles consumer business" (April 28, 2026)
  • Korea JoongAng Daily, "Samsung outsources dishwasher, microwave production" (April 28, 2026)
  • The Korea Herald, "Samsung reinstates dual-CEO structure" (November 21, 2025)
  • The Korea Herald, "Samsung Taylor hiring update" (April 2, 2026)
  • Yicai Global, "Samsung restructures China business" (April 9, 2026)
  • SamMobile, "Samsung restructures China business, skips expo" (April 15, 2026)
  • Quartz, "Samsung moves U.S. headquarters from New Jersey to Texas" (June 3, 2026)
  • NJBIZ, "Samsung relocating mega N.J. tech headquarters to Texas" (June 1, 2026)
  • NorthJersey.com, "Samsung leaving Englewood Cliffs for Texas" (June 2, 2026)
  • Pascack Press, "Samsung leaving Englewood Cliffs for Texas" (June 8, 2026)
  • RE-NJ, "Samsung Englewood Cliffs move" (October 2025)
  • Rutgers Bloustein School, Property Tax Analysis (October 2025)
  • NJ.com, "Samsung's filing pushes June total past 1,000 jobs" (July 1, 2026)