Economy, Tourism and Transport Secretary Stephen Flynn said the redundancy scheme was part of efforts to modernise the shipyard and put it on a more competitive footing.
“The action that the leadership team at Ferguson Marine is taking today is necessary to help secure a viable future for the yard, and that of commercial shipbuilding on the Clyde,” he said.
Flynn said he had been assured that the reduced workforce would not affect the building of the MV Glen Rosa.
And he added: “Our intention to directly award four vessels continues to undergo full due diligence further to next steps which will be announced to parliament in due course.”
Even if a new contract was awarded imminently, at least a year of design work would be required before the yard would be in a position to start cutting steel.
While the promised new orders have yet to be confirmed, they have allowed the firm to update its business plan, potentially unlocking the £14.2m of modernisation money first announced by ministers more than two years ago.
Ground investigation work is taking place with a view to installing new equipment and software which is hoped to raise productivity.
The shipyard’s apprentice programme is also unaffected by the redundancies in the short term, with 34 young workers already in training and a new intake of 10 trainees about to start their first year in college.