Consolation Prize: Peloton Lays Off 2,800 Employees – Gives Them Free 12-Month Subscription

Exercise bike maker Peloton has reportedly laid off 2,800 employees, representing 20 percent of the company’s workforce, and provided them with a severance package which includes a 12-month subscription to the Peloton exercise service.

Business Insider reports that exercise equipment maker Peloton is firing 2,800 employees, which accounts for around 20 percent of its corporate workforce, due to the company’s continued poor business performance.

Peloton has granted all 2,800 employees a severance package including a “meaningful cash severance allotment” that’s determined “based on job level and tenure” as well as a 12-month membership to the Peloton fitness service.

Peloton CEO John Foley

In its press release about the layoffs, the company said: “The Peloton monthly membership will be complimentary for impacted team members for an additional 12 months.”

Breitbart News reported in January that Peloton has temporarily halted the production of its fitness products citing low consumer demand.

The company reportedly plans to pause Bike production for two months, from February to March. The company halted production of its Bike+ product in December and has no plans to resume production until June. The company stated in a confidential presentation on January 10 that demand for its connected fitness equipment has faced a “significant reduction,” due to inflation, increased competition, and shoppers’ price sensitivity.

Peloton appears to have incorrectly predicted the demand for its products after seeing a major spike in demand during the coronavirus pandemic. Now the company has thousands of exercise bicycles and treadmills sitting in warehouses without the demand from consumers to eagerly buy them.

Today, Breitbart News reported that the company is replacing company co-founder John Foley as CEO. Foley will be assuming the role of executive chair while former Spotify CFO Barry McCarthy will be taking on the role of CEO and president and joining the company’s board.

Read more at Breitbart News here.

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship. Follow him on Twitter @LucasNolan or email him at [email protected]