In the last few months, Amazon has made headlines for laying off people from its various departments. Just a couple of days back, it was reported that the tech giant might not increase the base pay of many senior employees this year. And now, the company has announced laying off hundreds of employees from its cloud computing arm, AWS. As per reports, AWS is undergoing significant restructuring, leading to the dismissal of hundreds of employees across its physical stores technology and sales and marketing divisions. This move reflects a strategic realignment towards key focus areas, as confirmed by an AWS spokesperson. While the company is committed to supporting affected employees in transitioning to new roles, these layoffs come amidst a broader shift in the usage of applications within Amazon-owned and third-party stores.
According to a report in Geekwire, AWS senior vice president, Matt Garman said that these decisions are not taken by the company lightly and that he knows that "change can be difficult."
"We operate in an incredibly fast-moving industry, and it is important that we stay agile as an organisation. The changes we are making are preparing the organisation for the future, aligning with our strategy and priorities, and reducing duplication and inefficiency. I recognise the effect this has on every individual impacted," he added.
Dilip Kumar, Vice President of AWS Applications, informed employees in a separate message that the layoffs will affect certain teams handling identity and checkout functions within the Physical Stores Technology organization at AWS.
"We’ve learnt a lot through the launch of identity and checkout technologies in our large format Amazon Fresh stores, and have good customer feedback to inform our plans going forward. We are also expanding our identity and checkout technologies in smaller-format 1P [first-party] stores, and growing our third-party locations," he added.
Meanwhile, AWS said that it is trying to find internal opportunities for laid off employees, as the company has thousands of vacancies. As per the Geekwire report, the company also says that it will continue hiring in other parts of its business.
These job cuts mark another chapter in Amazon's ongoing restructuring efforts, which began with massive layoffs in 2022 and continued into 2023, affecting various business units, including Twitch, Audible, and Prime Video. Despite these challenges, employees impacted by the recent layoffs in the US will receive pay and benefits for at least 60 days, along with eligibility for severance packages.
Last month, it was reported that Amazon had laid off hundreds of employees within its Pharmacy and One Medical divisions. Neil Lindsay, head of Amazon Health Services, had revealed the same in a memo to employees.
In the memo, Lindsay had reportedly talked about the company's dedication to improving customer experiences and driving innovation. He confirmed that this restructuring involved the elimination of several hundred positions across One Medical and Amazon Pharmacy. Although Business Insider had previously reported on these layoffs, Lindsay's memo provided the official confirmation ahead of the company's planned announcement.
Earlier this year, Amazon had trimmed its workforce by 5 percent in the "Buy with Prime" division.
