The Layoff Club

Laid off from Cisco.

Cisco has named three restructuring plans since fiscal 2024, the newest announced alongside record quarterly revenue, and it publishes charges rather than packages. The record holds the money set aside for severance and the notice questions its California filings keep drawing.

At a glance

What's known about Cisco severance and layoffs

  • Up to $1 billion · Pre-tax charges Cisco estimated for the plan it announced May 2026
  • $450 million · Employee severance charged under that plan in fiscal 2026
  • 471 · California jobs in the June 2026 filings
  • About 82,400 · Employees reported at fiscal 2026 year end, from 86,200 a year earlier
  • None published · Severance formula in Cisco's May 2026 announcement
  • 39 · Cisco filings in our WARN tracker all time

Recent Cisco layoffs

Cisco's June 2026 filings covered 471 California jobs

Cisco filed California WARN notices dated June 16, 2026 covering 471 jobs across San Jose, Milpitas and San Francisco, with separations reported for July 13. Six weeks earlier it had announced a restructuring plan of up to $1 billion in pre-tax charges and told staff the quarter would end with fewer than 4,000 jobs cut. A plaintiffs' firm opened a WARN Act investigation into the San Jose site in late June.

Previous rounds

Cisco layoff history

Cisco announces its restructuring in public and settles it in private. On May 13, 2026 it reported record quarterly revenue of $15.8 billion, up 12 percent year over year, and the same day announced a plan to invest in silicon, optics, security and AI that it sized at up to $1 billion in pre-tax charges for severance and other one-time termination benefits. Chuck Robbins told employees the quarter would end with fewer than 4,000 jobs cut, under 5 percent of the workforce, with most notifications starting the next morning. That plan is the third Cisco has named since fiscal 2024, after ones that closed at $926 million and $654 million.

The accounting is where the detail sits. Cisco recognized $693 million of restructuring and other charges in fiscal 2026, and its 10-K books $450 million of that as employee severance under the new plan, with $296 million still carried as a liability when the fiscal year closed in July. The two earlier plans were announced the same way this one was, at up to $1 billion, and came in under it. If you're reading that headline number and wondering what it means for you, it's an aggregate accounting figure with no per-person amount disclosed inside it, and Cisco said the local terms would come from leaders in each country.

California is where Cisco's cuts become a public record. Since the start of 2025 our tracker holds 5 filings covering 692 jobs, all California, and 2026 alone holds 3 filings covering 471 jobs. Those three were dated June 16, 2026 and split 236 jobs at the San Jose headquarters, 154 in Milpitas and 81 in San Francisco, with separations reported for July 13. The two before them, dated August 13, 2025, covered 221 jobs at two Bay Area sites, with staff informed the following day and roles ending October 13. All 39 Cisco filings we hold sit in the same WARN tracker.

The notice dates are the detail to compare with your own paperwork. A plaintiffs' firm has opened investigations into both the June 2026 San Jose filing and the August 2025 Milpitas filing, asking in each whether workers got the 60 days federal law requires before a covered mass layoff. Neither has established anything. Federal WARN reaches employers with 100 or more employees and covers qualifying plant closings and mass layoffs, with exceptions for unforeseeable business circumstances and faltering companies, and California's own test sits lower, at 75 employees and a layoff of 50 or more inside 30 days. The two most recent announcements were followed very differently. After the August 2024 announcement, employees waited until September 16 to learn who was affected. After the May 13, 2026 announcement, Cisco said most notifications would begin the next day.

What Cisco published for the 2026 round was the shape of the help rather than the size of the check. Pro-rated FY26 bonuses, placement services, a year of Cisco U access, and then leaders sharing timing, support and benefits directly in each country. A company that publishes its charges to the dollar and leaves your terms to a private conversation is a hard thing to plan around, whichever side of the notice you're on. Your separation agreement is the only document that settles anything, so the dates on it are worth reading twice. California also requires that same notice to go to the EDD, your Local Workforce Development Area, and the chief elected official of the local government affected. The Department of Labor seeks no damages for workers who got short notice or none, which makes that a claim you pursue rather than one an agency collects for you.

Reporting on previous Cisco layoff rounds

How Cisco's layoffs compare to other companies

Cisco discloses its restructuring accounting in detail, down to the severance line, while no individual severance formula is on record. The aggregate tells you a pool exists, not what any one person was offered.

What to do after being laid off from Cisco

  1. File for unemployment in the state where you worked. Benefits run from your filing date, and severance usually doesn't block you. Cisco's biggest hubs: California, North Carolina, Texas. Somewhere else? Every state is here.
  2. Apply for financial and hardship assistance. Unemployment supplements income, but food benefits, health coverage and utility help are often available as well. Here's some of what Cisco's hub states run: California, North Carolina, Texas, and every other state is here.
  3. Mind the health insurance window. Losing coverage opens a 60-day special enrollment period, and an ACA plan usually beats unsubsidized COBRA. Compare your options before the employer coverage lapses, and read how the COBRA clocks run if you are weighing it seriously.
  4. Get your real runway number. Severance plus savings divided by reality. The calculator takes five minutes.
  5. Know which clocks are already running. Severance review windows, COBRA election, visa grace periods, and 401(k) rollovers all run on federal deadlines that started at termination. All five deadlines are here.

Cisco layoff and severance questions

What severance has Cisco paid in its layoffs?

No formula is on record. What Cisco discloses is the accounting. The plan it announced in May 2026 carried up to $1 billion in estimated pre-tax charges, and the FY2026 10-K books $450 million of that as employee severance, with $296 million still held as a liability at fiscal year end. For the round itself Cisco named pro-rated FY26 bonuses, placement services and a year of Cisco U access, then left timing, support and benefits to leaders in each country. Your own agreement is the only document that states your number.

Did Cisco violate the WARN Act?

Not established. A plaintiffs' firm opened investigations into the June 2026 San Jose filing and the August 2025 Milpitas filing, asking whether affected workers got the 60 days federal law requires. An investigation isn't a finding, and no case is on record. Federal WARN reaches employers with 100 or more employees and covers qualifying plant closings and mass layoffs, with exceptions for unforeseeable business circumstances and faltering companies, so whether any one round qualifies is a fact question. California sets its own test at 75 employees and a layoff of 50 or more inside 30 days. If your notice ran short, the dates on your paperwork are what an employment attorney will want to see.

How many jobs did Cisco cut in 2026?

Cisco told employees on May 13, 2026 that the quarter would end with fewer than 4,000 jobs cut worldwide, under 5 percent of its workforce. The California share is the part on file. Our tracker holds 3 filings covering 471 jobs in 2026, all in California, dated June 16 with separations reported for July 13. Cisco's own headcount carries the wider number. It reported about 82,400 employees at the end of fiscal 2026 against about 86,200 a year earlier, a fall that includes attrition and divestitures as well as cuts.

Does Cisco pay bonuses to laid off employees?

In the May 2026 round it said it would. Chuck Robbins told staff the reduction would include pro-rated payment of FY26 bonuses to impacted employees, alongside placement services and a year of access to Cisco U courses. That was one message about one round rather than a standing policy, and it doesn't say how any individual proration was worked out. Check the bonus language in your separation agreement against your last plan document, and have the proration confirmed in writing before signing.

Who gets a WARN notice in California?

California requires the notice to reach the affected employees, the Employment Development Department, the Local Workforce Development Area, and the chief elected official of the local government affected. That's why these cuts sit in a public file at all, and why you can check the date Cisco told the state against the date it told you. The Department of Labor seeks no damages for workers who got short notice or none, so that part is a claim you pursue yourself or through an attorney.

Where do I file for unemployment after being laid off from Cisco?

In the state where you worked, not where the company is headquartered. Cisco's biggest U.S. hubs are California, North Carolina, Texas. Severance usually doesn't block you from filing, and benefits run from your filing date, so file the same week.

Is it OK to file for unemployment after a layoff at Cisco?

Yes. Unemployment insurance is funded by payroll taxes employers pay on wages, the claim never appears on credit reports or background checks, and future employers cannot see it. If the hesitation itself is the obstacle, whether filing is OK has its own article.

What happens to my health insurance after a layoff at Cisco?

Your plan sets the end date rather than the law, so the separation packet is where that date actually lives, and it is often the last day of the month rather than your last day of work. After coverage ends, COBRA lets you keep the identical plan by paying the whole premium yourself, up to 102 percent of what the plan really costs, which lands as several times the payroll deduction you were used to. You get 60 days to elect, counted from the later of coverage ending or the election notice arriving, and electing reaches the coverage back to the day the old plan stopped so no gap exists. How continuation coverage works walks the timing, and whether to take it rather than a marketplace plan is a separate decision.

Should I sign the severance agreement right away?

First pin down how much review time you actually have. If you're 40 or older, federal law gives you 21 days to consider an agreement that waives age claims, 45 in a group layoff, and a waiver signed under a shorter deadline can be invalid. If you're under 40, no federal window applies and the deadline in your packet may be real, so confirm it in writing and ask for more time if you need it. Use whatever window you have to read the release terms, especially non-disparagement and no-lawsuit clauses, and don't stall past a real deadline, because offers can be withdrawn.

Can I collect unemployment if I got severance from Cisco?

Usually yes, though some states delay benefits until severance pay periods end, and lump sums are treated differently than salary continuation. Check your state's rules on our state benefit pages, and file immediately either way so your claim date is locked in.