Amazon Plans To Lay Off 18,000 workers, More Than Meta Did Last Year

Amazon has announced that it will be cutting down its employee headcount, and now plans to reduce more than it has previously announced. The company had initially planned to lay off around 10,000 workers; the latest announcement will have an impact on more than 18,000 workers. Although the layoff will only affect only 1.2 percent of the company’s global headcount of 1.5 million people, it is relevant in terms of the number of people that will be affected. 

The company’s CEO, Andy Jassy via a memo sent out to employees said that “This year’s review has been more difficult given the uncertain economy and that we’ve hired rapidly over the last several years. In November, we communicated the hard decision to eliminate a number of positions across our Devices and Books businesses and also announced a voluntary reduction offer for some employees in our People, Experience, and Technology (PXT) organization. I also shared that we weren’t done with our annual planning process and that I expected there would be more role reductions in early 2023.”

The development comes after cloud-based software company Salesforce announced that it would be laying off 10 percent of its employee headcount. The company, however, added that “For those who will be leaving Salesforce, our priority is to fully support them, including by offering a generous package. In the U.S., affected employees will receive a minimum of nearly five months of pay, health insurance, career resources, and other benefits to help with their transition. Those outside the U.S. will receive a similar level of support, and our local processes will align with employment laws in each country.”

Unlike Salesforce, Amazon didn’t reveal how it plans to support the employees it plans to cut off, nor did the company announce severance packages. The company’s CEO Andy Jassy only said that “To those impacted by these reductions, I want you to know how grateful I am for your contributions to Amazon, and the work you have done on behalf of customers. You have made a meaningful difference in a lot of customers’ lives. To those who will continue on the journey with us, I look forward to partnering with you to keep making life better and easier for customers every day and relentlessly inventing to do so.”