-O Adejo
American retail company Amazon, plans to lay off approximately 10,000 employees in corporate and technology roles starting this week. This will be one of the most significant reductions in the company’s history. The news, first reported by the New York Times, would represent about 3% of Amazon’s workforce.
The company is looking to reduce its workforce in areas such as its devices division, which manufactures voice-controlled devices such as Alexa and home security cameras. People in the human resources and retail divisions are also likely to be let go.
According to Amazon, the reason for the job cuts is the current uncertain macroeconomic environment in which businesses find themselves in today.
The announcement comes on the heels of a recent wave of layoffs in the technology industry. Last week, Facebook’s parent company, Meta, announced the layoff of 11,000 employees, or roughly 13% of its workforce
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Other companies, such as Twitter, which Elon Musk recently acquired, laid off their management team and over 4,000 employees. Snapchat also laid off 1,300 people.
Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos has also warned that a US recession is on the way, and that people should prepare accordingly. He advised American households to postpone large-ticket purchases such as new televisions, refrigerators, and automobiles due to the risk of economic deterioration. Similarly, he advised small-business owners to postpone investments in new equipment in favour of increasing their cash reserves.
Amazon appears to be taking these steps. The company has been cutting costs, slowing spending, and freezing hiring for certain roles in recent months, most likely in preparation for a tougher economic backdrop.
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