Due to “the unpredictable economy” and the fact that the online retail behemoth “hired swiftly” during the pandemic, Amazon stated on Wednesday that it will be eliminating more than 18,000 positions from its workforce.
In a memo to his team, CEO Andy Jassy stated, “With the reductions, we announced in November and the ones we’re sharing today, we aim to cut slightly over 18,000 roles.” In November, the corporation announced 10,000 layoffs.
The company’s management is “fully conscious that these role eliminations are terrible for people, and we don’t take these decisions lightly,” according to Jassy.
We are providing packages that include a separation payment, transitional health insurance coverage, and outside job placement assistance to help people who are affected, he said.
Jassy stated that some of the layoffs would occur in Europe and that the affected employees would be notified beginning on January 18.
He claimed that “one of our teammates exposed this information externally,” which was why the hasty announcement was being made. Given the unstable state of the economy and the fact that we have hired frequently over the past few years, this year’s evaluation has been more challenging, according to Jassy.
Amazon, he continued, “has endured unpredictable and challenging economies in the past, and we will do so.” The retailer has in fact doubled its global workforce between the beginning of 2020 and the beginning of 2022 by hiring with fury during the pandemic to satisfy an explosion in demand for deliveries.
The group had 1.54 million employees worldwide at the end of September, not including seasonal workers recruited during periods of increased activity, particularly during the holiday season.