Amazon is set to cut up to 30,000 corporate positions, nearly 10% of its white-collar workforce, as the e-commerce and cloud computing giant streamlines operations, boosts artificial intelligence integration, and navigates challenges including a stringent return-to-office policy.
The layoffs, which Reuters reported will begin Tuesday morning, are part of a broader initiative to reduce costs and address over-hiring that occurred during the surge in demand sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic. This marks Amazon’s most significant corporate workforce reduction since 2022, when 27,000 jobs were eliminated.
CEO Andy Jassy has previously indicated that an increased reliance on artificial intelligence tools could lead to further job cuts, particularly in repetitive or routine roles. Sky Canaves, an eMarketer analyst, stated that this latest move signals Amazon’s growing recognition of AI-driven productivity within its corporate teams.
The cuts are expected to impact numerous departments, including Human Resources (People Experience and Technology), Operations, Devices and Services, and Amazon Web Services (AWS), the company’s highly profitable cloud computing unit. Team managers received training Monday in preparation for communicating the news to affected employees via email.
While AWS remains a core profit driver, it has faced challenges in recent quarters. Its second-quarter sales of $30.9 billion USD represented a 17.5% increase, lagging behind competitors like Microsoft Azure (39%) and Google Cloud (32%). AWS also recently contended with an approximately 15-hour internet outage.
Another factor contributing to the significant layoffs is Amazon’s strict five-day-a-week return-to-office policy, one of the most rigorous among major tech firms. This policy reportedly failed to prompt the desired number of voluntary resignations.
Reports suggest some employees who did not comply with the in-office mandate might be deemed to have voluntarily resigned without severance, a measure aimed at cost savings for the company.
These corporate job reductions contrast with Amazon’s recent announcement to hire 250,000 seasonal workers. Those hirings are intended to staff up for the anticipated busy holiday shopping period.