Amazon has confirmed a fresh round of 16,000 corporate job cuts, completing a plan to eliminate around 30,000 roles since October, marking the largest workforce reduction in the company’s three-decade history. The layoffs are part of CEO Andy Jassy’s strategy to reduce bureaucracy, streamline operations, and exit underperforming businesses, while leaving the door open for further reductions.
Although the total cuts represent a small fraction of Amazon’s global workforce of about 1.58 million employees, most of whom work in fulfillment centers and warehouses, they account for nearly 10 percent of its corporate staff. This makes the current restructuring more extensive than the 27,000 job cuts carried out between late 2022 and early 2023.
Amazon job cuts linked to restructuring and cost discipline
Amazon’s top human resources executive, Beth Galetti, said the job cuts were necessary to strengthen the company by reducing layers, increasing ownership, and removing bureaucracy. In a note to employees, Galetti acknowledged that some teams would continue to make adjustments as appropriate, signaling that additional layoffs remain a possibility, Reuters news report said.
The latest reductions follow a previous round of 14,000 job cuts announced in October, when Amazon cited the growing role of artificial intelligence and concerns over corporate culture shifts. The company has also acknowledged that it overhired during the COVID-19 pandemic, when demand for online shopping surged sharply.
Amazon does not plan to announce broad workforce reductions every few months.
Store closures and product exits deepen impact
The job cuts come alongside Amazon’s decision to shut down its remaining bricks-and-mortar Fresh grocery stores and Go markets, ending years of experimentation in physical retail. The company is also discontinuing its Amazon One biometric payment system, which used palm scanning technology for payments.
These closures triggered the latest wave of layoffs and underscore Amazon’s retreat from initiatives that failed to meet performance expectations.
AWS, Alexa, and Prime Video among affected units
Uncertainty spread across the company after Amazon mistakenly sent an internal email referring to the layoffs as “Project Dawn” to some Amazon Web Services staff. While the full scope of the cuts has not been disclosed, employees across AWS units, Alexa, Prime Video, devices, advertising, and last mile delivery teams reported being affected.
Amazon did not comment on the internal communication or the exact breakdown of job losses by division.
Artificial intelligence reshapes Amazon workforce
The layoffs highlight how artificial intelligence is reshaping workforce dynamics across the tech sector. Advances in AI assistants now enable companies to automate tasks ranging from routine administration to complex software development, accelerating adoption and reducing the need for certain corporate roles.
Andy Jassy has previously said that increased use of AI tools would lead to more automation and, ultimately, fewer corporate jobs. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, executives noted that while some roles will disappear, new ones will emerge, though some warned that AI could also be used as justification for planned job cuts.
Part of a wider tech industry trend
Amazon is not alone in trimming headcount. Other technology giants, including Meta Platforms and Microsoft, have also restructured after aggressive hiring during the pandemic. Companies such as UPS, Pinterest, and ASML have announced staff reductions in recent days, reflecting broader pressure on corporate costs.
At the same time, Amazon continues to invest heavily in robotics across its warehouses to speed up packaging and deliveries, reduce reliance on human labor, and lower operating costs, reinforcing the long-term shift toward automation even as corporate job cuts continue.
RAJANI BABURAJAN
