ADA, MI — Direct sales giant Amway is cutting 171 positions.

The job cuts started in July and are scheduled to run through December of 2020, according to a letter the company sent this month to the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity.

The reductions include 47 layoffs the company made public last week as part of a restructuring of its global Information Technology division.

“Most of those whose roles have been eliminated will remain with the company for a period of time to help implement a successful transition to a new way of working, which includes use of two global vendors for highly standardized work,” Amway spokesperson Anna Bryce said in a statement.

In May, Amway told the state it was cutting 115 positions. The company, in a letter dated Sept. 10, revised that figure to 171.

Bryce said the “recent organizational changes impacted just over 1% of the total employee population including 47 of our 3,000 total employees in West Michigan.”

In addition to workers at its Ada headquarters, 7575 Fulton St. E, the layoffs will also impact employees at an Amway facility in Caledonia, the company told the state.

Worldwide, the company has more than 16,000 employees. It once had more than 4,000 employees at its Ada headquarters.

Amway, a privately-owned family business, sells Nutrilite health supplements, Artistry cosmetics, homecare products like soaps, and durable products such as individual water and air treatment systems through close to 3 million distributors. The company celebrated its 60th anniversary earlier this year.

Bryce said the most recent layoffs are “part of an ongoing evaluation” to ensure Amway’s resources are aligned with the company’s “strategic priorities.”

“While we are making adjustments to our staffing in certain areas, we continue to invest in key areas of the business to help Amway Business Owners be even more competitive and successful in today’s marketplace,” she said.

Amway Business Owners are the people who sell the company’s products throughout the globe.

“We are focused on providing our ABOs and customers the best possible experience and that includes digital, data and analytics platforms to power social commerce; agile innovation across product categories to deliver personalized product solutions; and support and training to help ABOs build skills for social selling,” Bryce said.