Amazon has said it will cut another 9,000 jobs across its global business in “the next few weeks”.
Andy Jassy, chief executive of the technology giant, told staff that the move will reduce jobs in its web services, advertising, PXT solutions division and its Twitch livestreaming arm.
The cuts come on top of 18,000 job cuts the business had already announced in January. In the same month, Amazon revealed its intention to shut three UK warehouses and seven delivery stations, affecting more than 1,200 further jobs.
The company, which employs roughly 1.5 million people worldwide and more than 50,000 in the UK, did not say which locations will be most affected in the latest round of job cuts.
In a letter to workers, Jassy said: “As we’ve just concluded the second phase of our operating plan this past week, I’m writing to share that we intend to eliminate about 9,000 more positions in the next few weeks – mostly in AWS, PXT, Advertising and Twitch.
“This was a difficult decision, but one that we think is best for the company long term.
“To those ultimately impacted by these reductions, I want to thank you for the work you have done on behalf of customers and the company. It’s never easy to say goodbye to our teammates and you will be missed.”
Jassy said the business has sought streamline its costs and headcount in response to an “uncertain economy”.
Plans to reduce roles at the firm’s Twitch business – a livestreaming platform used primarily for gaming and music – come days after Emmett Shear said he was stepping down as chief executive of the operation after 16 years. Amazon purchased Twitch for around $1bn (£816m) in 2014.
Amazon’s latest job cuts are the next stage in a series of rolling reductions, begun last November with the announcement that 10,000 workers would be laid off, accounting for approximately 3 per cent of its corporate employees.
Last week, Facebook owner Meta revealed that it plans to cut around 10,000 jobs globally, four months after it axed another 11,000, an act in keeping with chief executive Mark Zuckerberg’s ambition that 2023 would be a “year of efficiency” for the firm.
A growing list of tech firms have collectively shed over 100,000 jobs in recent months, as companies react to unexpected financial challenges and contractions in the global economy in the post-pandemic world, as the cost-of-living crisis bites.
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