Amazon CEO says job cuts will continue into 2023

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said the e-commerce giant will be cutting jobs into 2023 as it adjusts to business conditions, his first public comments about the cost-reduction plans roiling Amazon since reports that it planned to wipe out about 10,000 jobs.

“Leaders across the company are working with their teams and looking at their workforce levels, investments they want to make in the future, and prioritising what matters most to customers and the long-term health of our businesses,” Jassy said Thursday in a statement. “This year’s review is more difficult due to the fact that the economy remains in a challenging spot and we’ve hired rapidly the last several years.”

Jassy said people were notified in the company’s devices and books business and that some in Amazon’s “People, Experience and Technology” organisation, which includes recruiters and human resources professionals, were offered voluntary buyouts. Many employees were given 60 days to find new jobs within the company, which would be followed by a severance package based on tenure if they fail to land new roles, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg.

“Our annual planning process extends into the new year, which means there will be more role reductions as leaders continue to make adjustments,” he said. “Those decisions will be shared with impacted employees and organizations early in 2023.”

Jassy has been trying to reduce expenses amid slowing growth in several areas of Amazon’s business. The company has projected the smallest revenue increase ever for its holiday quarter. In the past few months, Jassy had put in place a hiring freeze on some corporate roles and shut down several experimental and smaller programmes.