Corporate majors such as Amazon, HP, and Nestle have announced significant layoffs in recent weeks, heightening anxiety among workers. In the US, economists say businesses are largely in a "no-hire, no-fire" mode, limiting new hiring.
A growing number of companies across sectors are cutting jobs, citing rising operational costs. Some companies are laying off workers to invest in new technology, such as artificial intelligence, as part of bigger restructuring plans.
Amazon Layoffs
Amazon has recently announced that it will cut 16,000 jobs worldwide. This is the second round of layoffs for the company, after it already cut 14,000 jobs in October last year. Amazon plans to lay off thousands of corporate employees in the US, Canada, and Costa Rica, but the company has not yet officially informed those impacted, according to a report by Reuters.
AWS employees who got the email reported that the Wednesday meeting invitation was virtually instantly revoked in Slack channels that Reuters was able to access. In the email, Amazon called the layoffs "Project Dawn."
"Changes like this are hard on everyone. These decisions are difficult and are made thoughtfully as we position our organization and AWS for future success," the email read.
Nestle Job Cuts
Nestle is planning to cut 12,000 white-collar jobs over the next two years, which will save the company 1 billion Swiss francs, twice the savings they originally expected. In addition, 4,000 more jobs are being cut in production and supply chain roles.
Earlier in October, Nestle announced that it would cut 16,000 jobs worldwide over the next two years. The company's CEO, Philipp Navratil, said these are tough but necessary decisions because the world is changing, and Nestle needs to adapt faster.
HP Layoffs
HP is also planning to cut 4,000 to 6,000 jobs worldwide, saying this is part of a long-term plan that will continue until fiscal 2028.
HP's restructuring plan is expected to save at least $1 billion each year by the end of 2028.
Intel Layoffs
Intel has shed thousands of jobs as the struggling chipmaker works to revive its business.
Last year, CEO Lip-Bu Tan said Intel expected to end 2025 with 75,000 “core” workers, excluding subsidiaries, through layoffs and attrition. That's down from 99,500 core employees reported at the end of 2024.
The company previously announced a 15% workforce reduction.
Microsoft Job Cuts
Microsoft initiated two rounds of mass layoffs last year, first impacting 6,000 and then another 9,000 positions.
The tech giant cited “organizational changes”.
Novo Nordisk Job Cuts
Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has said it would cut 9,000 jobs, about 11% of its workforce. The company, which makes drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy, said the layoffs were part of wider restructuring.
Lufthansa Group Layoffs
Lufthansa Group says it will shed 4,000 jobs by 2030.
