Amazon is extending its year-long cost-cutting crusade with fresh layoffs hitting its advertising unit with 160 roles being axed. As reported by Business Insider, an internal email obtained by the publication revealed the not-so-sweet news to affected employees.
The email, dated March 26th, reads like a Silicon Valley layoff script – impacted employees are offered a generou 60-day to 90-day window (depending on location) to find a new role within the company, otherwise, their Amazon journey terminates. The silver lining? Full pay and benefits remain intact during this period. Amazon is even throwing in some outplacement assistance via recruiting firm Lee Hecht Harrison to soften the blow.
“We are taking the difficult step of reducing some roles across some Amazon Ads teams,” the email blandly states, before delivering the final punch: “Unfortunately, your role has been eliminated.”
Amazon confirmed the cuts to Business Insider, with a spokesperson adding that “up to 160 roles” might be shown the door globally. The official reason? A classic tech mantra – “reviewing the structure of our teams and making adjustments based on the needs of the business.” In this case, the “needs” apparently translate to prioritizing “investments in experiences that matter most to customers.”
This isn’t the first time Amazon has wielded the layoff axe in 2024. The retail giant has been on a cost-cutting rampage since late 2022, shedding at least 27,000 employees across various units – Prime Video, Twitch, Audible, and even its healthcare division felt the sting.
Amazon cranked up its performance improvement plans (PIPs) right around the time the layoffs began, hinting at a wider net of impacted employees. And if comments by Amazon CFO Brian Olsavsky in February are any indication, this might be just the beginning.
