Amazon is gearing up for one of its largest rounds of corporate layoffs ever, with plans to cut up to 30,000 white-collar positions starting Tuesday, according to people familiar with the matter. The move comes as the tech giant aims to streamline operations, curb pandemic-era overhiring, and lean further into automation and AI.
While this number represents just a fraction of Amazon’s total global workforce of 1.55 million, it would affect nearly 10% of its corporate staff, which currently totals around 350,000. It also marks the biggest round of corporate cuts since Amazon began laying off 27,000 employees in late 2022.
Who’s Impacted?
The cuts are expected to hit a wide range of departments:
Managers in affected divisions were asked to undergo layoff communication training on Monday. Email notifications to employees are set to begin Tuesday morning.
An Amazon spokesperson declined to comment.
AI-Driven Efficiency—and Job Losses
CEO Andy Jassy has been on a mission to reduce corporate “bureaucracy.” Earlier this year, he launched an anonymous hotline for employees to flag inefficiencies—resulting in over 450 process changes from more than 1,500 complaints.
In June, Jassy warned that the growing use of AI tools across Amazon would likely lead to further job cuts by automating routine, repetitive tasks. Analysts say that moment has arrived.
“This signals Amazon is realizing significant productivity gains from AI,” said Sky Canaves, an analyst at eMarketer. “At the same time, it’s under pressure to justify its long-term AI investments by cutting short-term costs.”
Context: Tech Layoffs and AWS Pressure
Amazon isn’t alone. According to Layoffs.fyi, about 98,000 tech jobs have been eliminated so far this year across 216 companies, with last year’s total hitting 153,000.
Despite solid growth, Amazon’s cloud division, AWS (Amazon Web Services), is facing stiff competition. While it posted $30.9 billion in second-quarter revenue (up 17.5% from last year), Microsoft’s Azure and Google Cloud outpaced it, growing 39% and 32%, respectively. Analysts expect AWS to report 18% revenue growth for Q3—still strong, but slowing.
AWS also recently suffered a 15-hour outage, disrupting services like Snapchat and Venmo, adding pressure to improve reliability.
Meanwhile, Holiday Season Ramps Up
Despite the looming cuts, Amazon is preparing for another major holiday shopping season. The company plans to hire 250,000 seasonal workers—the same number as the past two years—to support warehouse operations and logistics.
Amazon shares rose 1.3% on Monday to $227.11. The company will release its Q3 earnings this Thursday.
Source: Amazon’s Biggest Layoff Yet: 30,000 Jobs on the Chopping Block Amid AI Shift