Google has let go of employees from its Flutter, Dart, and Python teams just weeks before its annual developer conference, reported TechCrunch, which cited social media posts from affected staff.
A Google spokesperson informed the news portal that the company made these changes to its teams in the latter half of 2023 and into 2024, aiming to streamline operations and prepare for future opportunities.
"We’re simplifying our structures to allow employees more chances to work on our most innovative and important projects, focusing on our top priorities, while reducing bureaucracy and layers," the spokesperson said.
According to the report, Google clarified that the layoffs are not across the entire company, and affected employees have the option to apply for other roles within Google that are currently hiring.
This development follows a previous round of layoffs by Google aimed at cost-cutting, which targeted departments such as real estate and finance. In the finance sector, employees were released from roles in treasury, business services, and revenue cash operations.
Ruth Porat, Google's finance chief, communicated in an email to staff that the company would expand its "growth hubs" in locations like Bangalore, Mexico City, and Dublin as part of this restructuring.
According to media reports, Google recently laid off its entire Python team as part of a cost-saving initiative aimed at hiring cheap labour outside the US. The company reportedly intends to establish a new team in Munich, Germany, where labour costs are perceived to be lower.
In response to these layoffs, a former member of the Google Python team expressed disappointment in a post on Social.coop's Mastodon.
The employee, who had a two-decade career at Google, described the job as the best they ever had and criticized the layoffs as unfair. Another affected employee lamented the pain of witnessing their entire team, including the manager, being let go and replaced with remote workers from overseas.
Earlier this year, in January, Google also laid off hundreds of workers across various teams, including engineering, hardware, and assistant teams, as it refocused efforts towards enhancing its artificial intelligence capabilities.
