Advanced Micro Devices will cut 15 percent of its workforce -- about 1,800 people -- by the end of the year as it struggles to deal with ever-shrinking revenues amid weak PC sales. While some employees may be breathing a sigh of relief following reports that the cuts could be as deep as 30 percent, they're not out of the woods. In its earnings call on Thursday, during which it announced its performance would fall below Wall Street's expectations for the fourth quarter, AMD officials said:

AMD is also putting in place a business model to break even at an operating income level of $1.3 billion of quarterly revenue.  The company is targeting to achieve this by the end of the third quarter of 2013.

In other words, if it has trouble hitting the numbers by that point, more heads may roll. And remember that last November, AMD cut 1,400 employees from its payroll. It's not the first time AMD has issued a wave of layoffs. Last November, the chipmaker cut 1,400 folks from its payroll. What does it get from all this cost cutting? The company expects to save $20 million in operational costs during the fourth quarter and $190 million through 2013. “Our restructuring efforts are decisive actions that position AMD to compete more effectively and improve our financial results,” said CEO Rory Read.  “Reducing our workforce is a difficult, but necessary, step to take advantage of the eventual market recovery and capitalize on growth opportunities for our products outside of the traditional PC market.”