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Amazon: When a business fires a large number of workers all at once, it is known as a mass layoff, also referred to as a large-scale layoff or workforce reduction.
Numerous factors, including a loss in revenue, a corporate restructuring, or the outsourcing of certain positions, could trigger this.
Several well-known firms announced the dismissal of hundreds of thousands of employees in 2022.
Amazon, which has previously backed the cause, says it will keep letting people go.
The news
One of the largest and most successful e-commerce entities in the world is Amazon.
The business began as an online bookstore but rapidly grew to sell a range of goods, including electronics, apparel, and home goods, to name a few.
Amazon offers streaming services and cloud computing in addition to its online store.
According to current reports, Amazon is letting go of more than 18,000 workers.
The corporation claims that the decision was made in light of the dire outlook for the global economy.
Memo
According to Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon, additional layoffs will start early next week at the massive online retailer.
He explained the decision and wrote it down in a memo:
“Our annual planning process extends into the new year, which means there will be more role reductions as leaders continue to make adjustments.”
“Those decisions will be shared with impacted employees and organizations early in 2023.”
Jassy claims that Amazon has not yet determined how many new roles would be impacted.
After deciding, each leader would consult with their teams.
The document also indicated that the management team had met to discuss methods to cut costs at the company.
The leaders of Amazon will also stress the sustainability of the business and what its clients want.
“This year’s review has been more difficult given the uncertain economy and that we’ve hired rapidly over the last several years,” said Jassy.
Read also: Manhattan apartments suffer drop in fourth quarter
The layoffs
Andy Jassy stated in November that Amazon would continue to undertake job cuts into the first quarter of 2023.
According to many media sources, the e-commerce behemoth reportedly set a target to lay off over 10,000 workers last fall.
On Wednesday, Amazon started its layoffs.
To pursue long-term prospects with a more sustainable cost structure, Amazon intends to downsize its workforce.
Jassy admitted that many struggle with it and that it is difficult to make the cuts.
“We don’t take these decisions lightly or underestimate how much they might affect the lives of those who are impacted,” he added.
On January 18, Amazon will begin alerting the impacted employees.
“It’s not lost on me or any of the leaders who make these decisions that these aren’t just roles we’re eliminating,” said Jassy.
“But rather, people with emotions, ambitions, and responsibilities whose lives will be impacted.”
Shifting habit
At the onset of the epidemic, the major e-commerce powerhouse experienced unprecedented sales.
For almost all of their needs, consumers changed the way they purchase.
However, the price rises in 2022 had a detrimental effect on Amazon.
Consumer demand also decreased as more individuals began favoring in-person purchasing, an area on which the company is now concentrating.
Company stock
Wall Street analysts were disappointed by Amazon’s October holiday season projection as it fell below their expectations.
In contrast to the expected $155 billion, the business forecast final-quarter revenue between $140 and $148 billion.
An even worse estimate resulted from the effect of rising inflation and recessionary fears on consumer expenditure.
For the third quarter, Amazon reported revenue of $127.1 billion.
It exceeded 2021 levels by 15% but fell short of Wall Street expectations.
Other companies
Many tech company CEOs and founders acknowledged that they misread the pandemic demand.
As a result, many businesses are currently firing employees.
The largest mass layoff in Meta’s history, 11,000 workers were let go.
Since paying $44 billion to purchase Twitter, Elon Musk has also been sacking employees left and right.
Salesforce made a 10% staff reduction announcement last week.
References:
Amazon will lay off more than 18,000 workers
Amazon stock falls 14% on light holiday quarter sales forecast
