Amazon is preparing to cut tens of thousands of office jobs as part of a sweeping global restructuring, several media outlets report. The layoffs could begin as early as this week.
According to The Wall Street Journal and Reuters, the company plans to eliminate up to 30,000 positions. The move is part of a broad cost-cutting strategy led by chief executive Andy Jassy, who aims to refocus Amazon after a period of rapid growth.
Amazon declined to respond to requests for comment from international news organizations.
Largest round of layoffs since 2022
If confirmed, the planned job cuts would be among the biggest in the tech industry this year. They would also represent Amazon’s largest workforce reduction since 2022, when around 27,000 employees were laid off over several months.
Reports from CNBC and The New York Times backed the claims, citing insiders familiar with the company’s internal discussions. However, none of the reports specified which regions or departments will be hit hardest.
Corporate roles most at risk
The layoffs could affect about ten percent of Amazon’s corporate staff. Despite the scale, that figure represents only a small portion of Amazon’s global workforce, which totals more than 1.5 million employees.
According to data submitted to U.S. regulators, Amazon employs roughly 350,000 corporate workers worldwide, including executives, managers, and sales specialists.
Pandemic-era expansion leads to correction
During the Covid-19 pandemic, Amazon expanded at a historic pace to meet surging demand for e-commerce and home deliveries. The company hired thousands of workers to keep up with record orders.
Now, CEO Andy Jassy has shifted his focus toward cost efficiency and tighter spending. At the same time, Amazon has invested heavily in artificial intelligence to optimize its operations and improve profitability.
AI expected to transform Amazon’s workforce
In June, Jassy acknowledged that the company’s growing reliance on AI tools will change how work is done across its divisions. Automation, he said, will replace many repetitive tasks while creating new roles in emerging fields.
“We will need fewer people doing some of the jobs that are being done today,” Jassy said. “And more people doing new kinds of work that these technologies enable.”
