Fujitsu has received more applications to its voluntary redundancy scheme than it was looking for.
In April, the troubled supplier told staff that compulsory redundancies “may need” to be introduced if voluntary redundancies fall short of its target.
But according to the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) Union, the voluntary exit scheme offered by Fujitsu as part of its plan to reduce headcount by 10% has exceeded the 425 applications it sought, with 470 staff volunteering for the scheme.
The planned cuts will impact staff across the business, with UK delivery seeing the biggest hit, where 270 roles are set to be made redundant. The Japanese IT giant plans to reduce staff in its UK enabling functions by 75, and sales enablement will see 20 roles disappear. Its public and private sector businesses are also seeking cuts.
It is not known how many of the voluntary applications will be approved, and Fujitsu had not responded to questions from Computer Weekly when this article was published.
Fujitsu staff want out
The oversubscription reflects low morale across the business, which has faced huge public criticism since January 2024, when its role in the Post Office scandal became more widely understood.
A source told Computer Weekly: “Current and former Fujitsu employees have said they have lost faith in Fujitsu’s leadership and just want out after years of low pay rises, repeated restructures, redundancies, and the continuing fallout and media coverage from the Post Office Horizon Inquiry.
“Several said senior leadership seem more concerned with limiting legal liability and protecting themselves from the consequences of past decisions than restoring trust with employees, leaving many with the feeling that Fujitsu is drifting further into decline.”
The PCS Union, which represents a proportion of Fujitsu UK staff, said: “While not all applications are expected to be approved, we believe the employer is trying to maximise voluntary exits, resulting in a delay to any potential compulsory redundancy process until at least the second half of June. It’s understood that Fujitsu wants a clear picture of voluntary departures before deciding whether further measures are required.”
• Read more: Fujitsu’s role in the Post Office scandal: Everything you need to know
Separately, in July 2025, Fujitsu put nearly 500 UK employees on notice of possible redundancy as it planned to cut more than 100 roles. This followed cuts in April 2024, when Fujitsu cut about 100 jobs in its UK sales and pre-sales teams and, months later, made over half of its Oracle Practice team – around 60 jobs in the UK – redundant.
Fujitsu losing UK business
Fujitsu has since lost significant business in the UK public sector, where it has been traditionally strong, as the government, under pressure, attempts to distance itself from the supplier.
Notably, last month, the Post Office finally named the two suppliers that will replace Fujitsu on its Horizon contract.
According to Tussell, there have been just shy of £600m in Horizon contract extensions over the years, and it estimates the cost of the contract with Fujitsu over its lifetime to be £2.48bn.
The Post Office signed the first contract in 1999 with ICL, which was majority-owned by Fujitsu.
• Read more: Post Office Horizon scandal explained: Everything you need to know
Last month, it was announced that the Post Office would spend £500m on replacing the Horizon IT system, with Accenture taking over from Fujitsu in running the system and US retail specialist One View Commerce replacing it with new software.
Fujitsu has also had major contract losses at HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), where the government awarded Amazon Web Services the contract to provide services to enable it to exit three Fujitsu datacentres.
In July, the Home Office is ending an IT services contract with Fujitsu and moving it in-house, with the organisation currently working on an exit plan.
The contract, known as ITNow Service Desk, was originally signed in 2021 and was worth £21m over three years. It was due for renewal, but the Home Office decided to move the service in-house during the retendering process.
Meanwhile, Netcompany replaced Fujitsu on HMRC’s £245m post-Brexit Northern Ireland trading service after the troubled supplier was dropped. The Danish IT firm landed the HMRC Trader Support Service (TSS) contract.
Computer Weekly first exposed the Post Office scandal in 2009, revealing the stories of seven subpostmasters and the problems they suffered due to Horizon accounting software, which led to the most widespread miscarriage of justice in British history.
