Digitas lays off 2% of its US work force

Publicis Groupe's digital unit, Digitas, is laying off 2% of its 2,100 US employees in a restructuring effort. Employees were informed of the decision on Wednesday.

Digitas declined to comment on the move but released the following statement: “In response to changing client needs, we have taken the difficult step of restructuring staffing levels at some of our US offices.  We have redeployed talent wherever possible, but the realities of the current economy did require that we let some talented people go in order to best position the agency for continued growth and success.”

Many have pointed to shrinking budgets, particularly for big-name Digitas clients such as GM and American Express, as a key reason for the company's decision.

Digitas employees outside of the US — about 900 in total — will not be affected, and no executives appear to have been included in the cuts. No other layoffs are planned for the near future.