Guinness Owner Proposes 150 Layoffs Across Ireland

(Photo: Press Association via AP Images)

On Monday, British spirits giant Diageo notified officials that around 150 Irish-based jobs are at risk in its latest restructuring plan. The firm is responsible for some of Ireland’s best-known alcohol exports, chief among them Guinness beer and Baileys cream liqueur.

The company employs nearly 29,000 people worldwide, 1,200 of whom are based in Ireland across the firm’s brewing, distilling, liqueur-making, marketing and sales departments. Ireland’s Department of Enterprise confirmed that it was notified of “proposed collective redundancies,” though it did not disclose when or where the job cuts might take place.

In an email statement shared with The Spirits Business, a Diageo spokesperson wrote:

“In February [interims] we shared our intention to redesign our operating framework, to drive sustainable returns for shareholders by delivering a more competitive Diageo. We will always prioritise informing our colleagues of any organisational changes first and have committed to update shareholders on our progress at a Capital Markets Day on 6 August.”

It’s been widely reported that Diageo is pursuing an aggressive restructuring plan under the leadership of newly appointed CEO Dave Lewis, nicknamed “Drastic Dave” based on his strategies during previous tenures at Unilever and Tesco.

According to the two anonymous sources interviewed by the Financial Times, Lewis has set cost-reduction initiatives for Diageo’s executive committee rather than specifying layoffs across the board. An internal announcement on the scale of job losses is expected to be distributed sometime this week.

In addition to its portfolio of Irish brands, Diageo is known worldwide as the owner of Don Julio, Casamigos, Johnnie Walker, Captain Morgan and Tanqueray.

The company is one of many alcohol industry giants struggling against headwinds over the past few years. In its most recent earnings report, Diageo announced that its organic sales fell by nearly 3% in the first half of fiscal 2026, dragged down by a 7% drop in North America and an 11% decline in Asia Pacific.