Amazon Prepares to Cut 18,000 Jobs as E-Commerce Demand Wanes

Amazon is feeling the freeze as demand for online shopping wanes. The e-commerce giant is embarking on the biggest set of job cuts among any tech company, with layoffs slated to begin over the next several weeks.

According to people cited by the Wall Street Journal, Amazon is planning to lay off over 18,000 of its corporate employees. Initially, the company back in November said plans were underway to let go about 10,000 people, primarily those concentrated across its devises business, recruiting, and retail sectors. However, that figure was recently upgraded thanks to a slowing economy, surging inflation, and rapidly rising interest rates, all of which are creating undue strain on consumers’ wallets.

Thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic, consumers conducted much of their shopping online, driving demand for Amazon’s numerous e-commerce businesses, such as grocery and cloud-computing. To meet the sudden demand influx, Amazon hired hundreds of thousands new workers and doubled its logistics network. However, when demand began to sour and consumers reverted to physical shopping, Amazon decided to downsize unprofitable operations.

Amazon employs around 1.5 million people, with a large proportion of them working in its warehouses. Amazon’s first move was to shutter brick-and mortar stores and less sought-after businesses including Amazon Care during the spring and summer 2022. The company then announced a hiring freeze, before ultimately deciding to lay off workers.

Information for this briefing was found via the WSJ. The author has no securities or affiliations related to this organization. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.