Panic and mass layoffs at Russian IT giant / Illustrative photo Shutterstock
Office software developer Miyofis was planning to replace Microsoft Office in Russia with its own solutions, but is mired in losses. As a result, almost all employees will be effectively thrown out, leaving only a few specialists.
What is known about the mass layoffs at the “Microsoft Office killer” in Russia?
“Miyofis” has informed employees about large-scale layoffs, writes The Moscow Times.
According to one source, almost all employees, except for the technical support team, could be affected by the cuts. Another source confirmed that some departments are being cut almost entirely.
A former employee of the company said that he and his colleagues were threatened with dismissal without compensation for various reasons. Among them were being 10 minutes late for work, being late for business trip reports for a day, etc.
But the employees organized a union and warned the employer about possible lawsuits for illegal dismissal. After that, the staff began to offer other terms for terminating the employment relationship.
The company acknowledged the problem
In March, Miyofis CEO Vyacheslav Zakorzhevsky sent an email to employees stating that in 2025, “despite significant efforts,” the developer faced “serious financial difficulties.”
The letter stated that the company:
- carries out business restructuring;
- reviews the product portfolio;
- changes the organizational structure;
- concentrates only on areas with the greatest potential.
As of the end of 2025, 1,013 people were officially employed at Miyofis. At the same time, last year the company more than tripled its net loss – from 1.2 billion to 4 billion rubles. The explanatory notes to the financial statements specified that this was due to the “specificity of the activity” of the developer, who receives funds from the sale of software products with a long delay.
What other problems does Russian business have?
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The financial performance of Russian companies deteriorated sharply at the beginning of this year, with a combined net profit of 3.4 trillion rubles, down 33.1% from the previous year. Income from small businesses and the self-employed fell to about $7.5 billion in the first quarter of this year.
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The Russian authorities have stepped up the fight against shadow employment and “envelope” salaries, with 219,000 workers receiving official status. Companies can be subject to inspections if they have salaries below the minimum level, many self-employed people, or an average salary below the average level in the region.
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Russia's Federal Tax Service has begun freezing intangible business assets, such as patents and trademarks, to secure debt collection. The tax service's new measures particularly affect IT companies and businesses that own significant intellectual assets.