Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) officially announced approximately 16,000 job reductions across the company on Wednesday, according to Beth Galetti, Senior Vice President of People Experience and Technology at Amazon.
In a message shared with employees on Tuesday, Galetti stated the cuts follow organizational changes that began in October. “We’ve been working to strengthen our organization by reducing layers, increasing ownership, and removing bureaucracy,” Galetti wrote.
The company will offer most U.S.-based employees 90 days to seek internal positions, with timing varying internationally based on local requirements.
Employees unable to find new roles will receive severance pay, outplacement services, and health insurance benefits.
Second Wave Of Corporate Cuts
These reductions come after Amazon announced 14,000 corporate job cuts in October, bringing total planned cuts to approximately 30,000 roles. It represents approximately 1% of the total workforce of 1.56 million.
The layoffs affect divisions including Amazon Web Services, retail, Prime Video, and the People Experience and Technology unit, according to earlier Reuters reporting.
CEO Andy Jassy previously stated during the company’s third-quarter earnings call that the cuts were “not really financially driven, and it’s not even really AI driven,” emphasizing they were about “culture.”
Analyst Perspectives On Efficiency Push
CNBC host Jim Cramer issued a “Buy” rating for Amazon on Tuesday, supporting the company’s operational efficiency strategy.
Analysts maintain a consensus price forecast of $293.82, representing potential upside of approximately 19% from current levels.
However, Gene Munster, managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management, suggested AI’s role in workforce reduction remains an unspeakable factor that executives find difficult to acknowledge publicly.
Price Action: AMZN stock is up 0.40% in Wednesday’s pre-market trading session, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
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