Job cuts continue within the technology sector. Although 2024 has just started, over 39,400 employees have been laid off already, according to Layoffs. fyi.
The trend applies to tech giants and startups all over the country. Experts say that the most extensive tech layoffs are to come, and job cuts are not slowing down.
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The tech industry is still on the rise. The economy is stable, and stock prices for giants like Google, Amazon, and Meta are rising. So, what are the reasons behind job cuts in tech companies?
Declining revenue might be true for smaller startups but not big Tech. Here are some of the reasons named by the companies so far:
Overall, technology companies joined this trend to reduce costs, invest in more extensive projects, and adjust to the over-hiring practices of 2019-2020.
To understand the issue’s significance, let’s look at layoff statistics before 2024. The biggest tech layoffs from 2020 to 2023 are:
| № | Company | Layoffs |
| 1 | Amazon | 27,410 |
| 2 | Meta | 21,000 |
| 3 | 12,115 | |
| 4 | Microsoft | 11,158 |
| 5 | Salesforce | 10,140 |
| 6 | Phillips | 10,000 |
| 7 | Ericsson | 8,500 |
| 8 | Flink | 8,100 |
| 9 | Uber | 7,785 |
| 10 | Micron | 7,200 |
| 11 | Dell | 6,650 |
| 12 | Qualcomm | 1,525 |
| 13 | Intel | 995 |
It is important to note that these are the biggest tech layoffs worldwide, not only in the United States. In 2023 alone, 262,753 tech employees were laid off. At the same time, media reports show that the tech giants are as profitable as ever. According to the New York Times, Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, Apple, and Google generated around $1.63 trillion in sales in the last fiscal year. In percent rates, it is about 81% more than five years prior.
Despite tens of thousands of layoffs, these five companies gained $3.5 trillion in market value.
The first quarter of the year hasn’t ended, yet a lot of tech layoffs have taken place. Here are twelve companies that let employees go so far as February 2024.
In January 2024, SAP laid off 8,000 employees, which is around 7% of the company’s workforce.
One of the most profitable tech companies in the world continues downsizing. The company laid off 1,900 tech employees in January of 2024.
This company let 1,800 tech employees go, which might not seem like a massive number in comparison to other tens of thousands of layoffs. However, it accounts for 25% of the company’s workforce.
Wyafiar laid off 1,650 tech employees, which is around 13% of its workforce.
One thousand one hundred professionals were laid off by this company in January, which is about 5% of its staff.
The giant let 1,000 workers go in this period. And the CEO notified employees that it is not the end of cuts in the corporate email.
The exact amount of workers (1,000) lost their jobs at eBay this year. It is about 9% of the staff.
Tel-Aviv-based company laid off 900 workers, who account for 16% of the staff.
This business let 800 employees go, which is a huge number as it is 90% of its workforce.
Even gaming businesses are not an exception to the trend. Riot Games is one of the tech companies that laid off employees in January of this year, namely 530 (11%).
There were 500 tech layoffs in Twitch, which is 35% of the company’s staff.
There were 400 layoffs in the company as of January 2024.
Besides the companies mentioned above, there were other layoffs in Tech. Here are these other companies:
| № | Company | Layoffs | Percentage |
| 1 | Swiggy | 400 | 7% |
| 2 | IAC | 330 | – |
| 3 | Playtika | 300 | 10% |
| 4 | Veeam | 300 | – |
| 5 | Brex | 282 | 20% |
| 6 | Frontdesk | 200 | 100% |
| 7 | Discord | 170 | 17% |
| 8 | NuScale Power | 154 | 28% |
| 9 | Inmoby | 125 | 5% |
| 10 | Cure.fit | 120 | – |
| 11 | Lazada Group | 100 | 30% |
| 12 | Audible | 100 | 5% |
| 13 | YouTube | 100 | – |
| 14 | Personio | 100 | – |
| 15 | Flexe | 99 | 38% |
| 16 | Cue Health | 94 | – |
| 17 | Branch | 85 | – |
| 18 | Pitch | 80 | 67% |
| 19 | Storytel | 80 | 13% |
| 20 | Beam Benefits | 74 | – |
| 21 | BenchSci | 70 | 17% |
| 22 | SevenShifts | 68 | 19% |
| 23 | Nevro | 63 | 5% |
| 24 | Orca Security | 60 | 15% |
| 25 | 60 | – | |
| 26 | Sisense | 60 | 13% |
| 27 | Sirplus | 60 | – |
| 28 | TikTok | 60 | – |
| 29 | NanoString Tech | 50 | 9% |
| 30 | FullStory | 50 | 10% |
| 31 | SonderMind | 49 | 17% |
| 32 | FirstMode | 48 | 20% |
| 33 | Uber Freight | 40 | – |
| 34 | Rent the Runway | 37 | 10% |
| 35 | Trigo | 30 | 15% |
| 36 | Amazon | 30 | – |
| 37 | The Messenger | 24 | – |
| 38 | Seedr | 15 | – |
| 39 | GrabCAD | 13 | – |
| 40 | Humane | 10 | – |
Some companies had to let workers go due to economic headwinds. However, many tech layoffs have nothing to do with profit, interest rates, and financial hardships. Huge players use cost-cutting policies to invest in Artificial intelligence and solutions that promise to bring even bigger profits in the future.
The trend continues in February as well. The latest news comes from Mozilla, Cisco, and Instacart.
Mozilla announced about 60 layoffs (5%), mainly in the p roduct development roles. It was reported only a week after a new CEO was appointed.
Instacart is cutting jobs due to restructuring efforts. The company plans to cut 250 positions (7%). The company claims it wants to focus on promising initiatives, operational efficiency, and current business needs.
However, the most significant announcement in terms of layoffs happened within Cisco. The company is planning to cut down 4,250 jobs (5%). The company decided to focus on high-growth areas.
Based on the news and reports, layoffs will continue in the Tech industry. The sector is adjusting to a new reality, promising technologies, and overhiring of the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the economic situation is stable for major players, the situation for professionals is not so bright.
