Amazon will reduce its workforce by 9,000 staff over the next few weeks across numerous products, including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Chief Executive Andy Jassy announced in a staff memo on Monday.
The company said that it would cut its headcount to reduce overhead costs, citing “uncertainty that exists in the near future,” the memo read. Jassy wrote to employees shortly after the firm concluded its OP2 second phase of budgeting
Amazon follows Meta with round #2 of corporate layoffs https://t.co/z5QsjVsTNJ
— Julia Pollak (@juliaonjobs) March 20, 2023
The redundancies come just months after it slashed its workforce by 18,000 people from November to January.
He wrote in the memo,
“The overriding tenet of our annual planning this year was to be leaner while doing so in a way that enables us to still invest robustly in the key long-term customer experiences that we believe can meaningfully improve customers’ lives and Amazon as a whole”
The memo explained that Amazon plans to reduce workers linked to cloud computing, advertising, human resources, and Twitch services.
Causes and Effects of New Layoffs
The news comes after the company winds down its COVID-19 hires, where staff numbers topped 1.6 million by late 2021, an increase of 798,000 from the previous two years for the same period.
Additional cuts to its operations include Amazon Web Services (AWS), corporate hires, warehouse expansion, and novel projects, news reports read.
XR Today understands that one of its experimental projects could include its plans to develop XR solutions. This comes after the firm hired tech experts, product managers, designers, researchers, and other specialists
News of Amazon’s job posting in April last year revealed plans to hire a Senior Product Designer to “research, build and iterate on new concepts and experiential prototypes.”
Unveiled in a Protocol report, the job posting aimed to develop a “new-to-world XR consumer product.”
Metaverse firm NVIDIA also leverages AWS for its architectural, engineering, and construction (AEC) integration tools for digital twins, mapping, and metaverse services.
Additional Memo Updates
Jassy added that Amazon did not announce the layoffs “a couple months ago” as the company did not finalise its assessments.
Jassy continued,
“Once those decisions have been made [by late April], we will communicate with the impacted employees (or where applicable in Europe, with employee representative bodies). We will, of course, support those we have to let go, and will provide packages that include a separation payment, transitional health insurance benefits, and external job placement support”
He concluded that leaner operations along while ‘robust’ investment in “key long-term customer experiences” would allow the logistics giant to accomplish its objective.
He concluded: “To those ultimately impacted by these reductions, I want to thank you for the work you have done on behalf of customers and the company. It’s never easy to say goodbye to our teammates, and you will be missed.”
Tech Crisis Continues
The Amazon layoffs come just days after Meta Platforms revealed it would launch a further 10,000 cuts to its workforce earlier in March.
Mark Zuckerberg, Chief Executive and Founder, Meta, announced on Tuesday last week the redundancies would take place across its family of apps, which include WhatsApp, Facebook, and Instagram.
The wave of layoffs comes after an initial round of cutbacks totalling 11,000 employees in November. The company cited poor revenues, high research and development (R&D) costs, global regulations, and others, triggering its “year of efficiency” plans.
It is unclear if additional tech giants such as Microsoft, Salesforce, and others will launch similar measures to prevent future revenue crises. Microsoft also axed its AltspaceVR metaverse platform due to the tech crisis.
Further headaches are set to kick off after Silicon Valley Bank collapsed this month, with its operations in the United States falling into Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Banking giant HSBC also acquired SVB’s British wing, SVB UK, for just £1 following the aftermath. The bank regularly funded emerging technologies, startups, and venture capital for tech companies.
