'Some roles no longer required': Amazon begins mass layoffs, impacted employees informed through email

By Team Newsable | First Published Nov 17, 2022, 10:50 AM IST

Amazon has begun to cut down around 3 percent of its workforce globally. The firm confirmed that laid off employees have already received the notification through mail. Amazon's spokesperson Kelly Nantel said as part of the annual operating planning review process, certain roles are no longer necessary.

Amazon has started to cut down on its workforce to implement cost-cutting measures as the last few quarters were not profitable. This week, the corporation reportedly plans to let go of close to 10,000 people across all departments. The layoff process began on Wednesday, but the tech company provided no public information. Finally, Amazon has acknowledged that it would be reducing its personnel owing to "unusual and unpredictable macroeconomic situations" in a recent notification.

David Limp, Senior Vice President of Devices and Services at Amazon, acknowledged in a public statement that the company has already been informed of the affected employees' layoffs and that it "will continue to work closely with each individual to provide support, including assisting in finding new roles."

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He said that several teams and programmes have been restructured and combined as a result of the poor economic climate. Some positions won't be needed any more, he continued, "which is one of the implications of these decisions."

This week, The New York Times reported that Amazon intended to fire around 10,000 workers in corporate and technical positions. According to the article, these layoffs would be the biggest in business history.

The overall number of layoffs "remains variable" and may alter, although the amount represents about 3% of its corporate employees. Amazon's spokesperson Kelly Nantel said as part of the annual operating planning review process, certain roles are no longer necessary.

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The company has given the affected employees two months to find another position with the company after notifying them in writing of their termination. Amazon has pledged to facilitate the transition by providing a package that includes a separation payment, transitional benefits, and outside job placement assistance in the event that the employees are unable to find a new position.

The week before, Amazon and Facebook parent company Meta both disclosed layoffs. Last week, Facebook cut 11,000 jobs, almost 13% of its workforce. The corporation has never before in its history reduced its personnel, much alone on such a big scale. However, Mark Zukerberg chose to reorganise cost-cutting efforts owing to declining income and unfavourable macroeconomic conditions.

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