In a memo, CEO Stéphane Bancel said the job cuts are needed to align the struggling vaccine maker’s cost structure with the “realities of our business.”

Biotech giant Moderna announced it will lay off 10% of its workforce in a move CEO Stéphane Bancel called “a difficult decision but necessary step forward,” in an internal memo sent to employees today.

The layoffs are part of an ongoing effort to reduce operating costs amid government and competitive challenges to its vaccine business.

Moderna said on Thursday it would trim roughly 10% of its global workforce and have fewer than 5,000 employees by the end of the year, as the biotech accelerates its cost-cutting efforts amid declining sales of COVID-19 vaccines.

Moderna Inc. shares declined as the company’s cost-cutting efforts failed to assuage investors who are worried about the decline of its Covid vaccine business.

Massachusetts-based Moderna said it plans to cut 10% of its global staff as part of its ongoing efforts to reduce annual operating expenses by around $1.5 billion by 2027.

Massachusetts-based Moderna, one of the companies at the forefront of developing a vaccine during the COVID pandemic, announced Thursday that it will lay off about 10% of its workforce.

Moderna (MRNA) stock in focus as the company plans to cut 10% of its workforce by 2025 amid cost-saving efforts. Read more here.