Amazon eyes cutting 9,000 more jobs, bringing total in 2023 to 27,000

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
20 Mar 2023 20:18

This comes after 18,000 jobs were axed in January.

The logo of Amazon is seen at the company logistics center in Boves, France, on August 8, 2018. (Reuters)

9,000 more jobs are to be cut from the online retail giant's workforce after 18,000 jobs were axed in January, said Amazon CEO, Andy Jassy.

"Given the uncertain economy... and the uncertainty that exists in the near future, we have chosen to be more streamlined in our costs and headcount," Jassy said in a memo to staff.

The cuts are considered less than those seen at some other tech giants.

For instance, Meta laid off nearly 25% of its workforce in what CEO Mark Zuckerberg called the company's "year of efficiency" as the US tech sector continues to downsize.

CEO Jassy told workers that the layouts were necessary, especially following feedback that came from departments since the company wishes to find a way to downsize after years of sustained hiring.

This was largely caused by the coronavirus pandemic that saw people resorting to internet shopping and entertainment, which massively benefitted the Seattle-based company.

"Rather than rush through these assessments without the appropriate diligence, we chose to share these decisions as we've made them so people had the information as soon as possible," Jassy said.

The cut will mainly affect Amazon's cloud computing, human resources, advertising, and Twitch video game streaming businesses, as Jassy explained to the staff.

The layoffs came as part of a cost-cutting campaign that will aid them to open a new company headquarters in Wahington DC.