McDonald's is slimming down its corporate structure and laying off workers in an effort to reduce expenses by $500 million by the end of 2019.
In an email to all U.S. employees, suppliers and franchisees, McDonald's USA President Chris Kempczinski said the Golden Arches would be restructuring its regional offices around the country, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
"I recognize that change is difficult, and that eliminating layers within our organization means some employees will ultimately exit our system," Kempczinski said in the memo, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Kempczinski did not elaborate on the number of positions that would be reduced, but said that the company would provide more details during its town hall meeting June 12.
"We are always evaluating ways to better serve our customers and continue to grow our business," Terri Hickey, a spokeswoman for McDonald's, told CNBC via email. "With that in mind, we are putting into place a new U.S. field structure that will better support our franchisees and will ensure McDonald's continues on a path to being more dynamic, nimble and competitive."
"These planned actions are consistent with our previously announced $500 million G&A targeted savings, which we expect to achieve by the end of 2019," she said.
The news come just days after McDonald's opened its new headquarters in Chicago.
Shares of the company were up more than 2 percent Thursday.