The majority of the top companies in the world are on a layoff spree, especially the IT giants. Tens of thousands of employees have been laid off, even at once by some companies. The employment sector is in shambles currently.
Cost-cutting, subpar performance and financial difficulties are some of the reasons behind the substantial layoffs that occurred amid inflationary pressures and the global economic recession.
In response to weak consumer spending, rising interest rates, and the soaring effects of inflation across the global economic and financial markets, the major IT companies in the world have either frozen their recruitment process or laid off employees.
Here is a list of the top 10 companies laying off employees in 2022 and the key reasons behind the move.
1. Meta
IT giant founded in 2004
CEO: Mark Zuckerberg
Laid off: 11000 employees
The largest tech layoff of 2022 occurred when Meta, the parent organization of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, announced on November 9 that it would be letting go of more than 11,000 employees, almost 13% of its workforce.
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2. Amazon
E-commerce giant founded in 1994
CEO: Jeff Bezos
Laid Off: 10000 employees
The layoffs were first announced by Amazon in mid-November, affecting about 3% of its corporate employees. The company's device segment, which includes its Alexa products, as well as its retail and human resources businesses, were the main targets of its layoffs. It is the largest employment reduction that Amazon has ever experienced.
3. Twitter
Social Media Platform founded in 2006
CEO: Elon Musk
Laid Off: 3700
In one of the most surprising turns of events of the decade, billionaire and Tesla founder Elon Musk acquired the social networking platform Twitter for $40 billion, making it one of the most expensive acquisitions in history. Over 3700 employees were laid off after Musk took over the social networking platform, accounting for over 50% of the platform's global workforce, including senior executives and the former CEO, Parag Agarwal.
4. Ford
Automobile manufacturer founded in 1903
CEO: Jim Farley
Laid Off: 3580 employees
One of the biggest automobile manufacturers in the world, Ford, announced in the month of April that 580 of its US employees would be laid off. Later, in August the company began its second layoff, firing over 3,000 employees and contract workers. The corporation wants to adopt new technologies that were not previously vital to its operations, which is reported to be the cause of the layoffs and resource redeployment.
5. Better.Com
Digital homeownership company founded in 2014
CEO: Vishal Garg
Laid Off: 3250 employees
Although substantially fewer in layoff numbers as compared to the IT giants, Better.com's layoffs are probably the most controversial to date. In 2021, the company and its CEO came under intense fire for sacking over 900 employees on a single Zoom call. It sacked roughly 1,000 workers in April after laying off about 2,000 workers in March, and around 250 employees in August, approximating 3250 of its employees this year alone.
6. Microsoft
US-based tech corporation founded in 1975
CEO: Satya Nadella
Laid Off: 3000 employees
Source: Mike Mozart/Flickr
American tech giant Microsoft became the first tech behemoth to begin laying off employees. It began its layoffs as part of a "realignment" process. Microsoft sacked 1,800 workers in July 2022, and 200 more workers a month later. It made its third round of layoffs in 2022 by sacking almost 1,000 workers in October.
7. BYJU’S
India-based Ed-tech company founded in 2011
CEO: Byju Raveendran
Laid Off: 2500 employees
One of the biggest Ed-tech companies in the world, BYJU'S fired 2,500 employees, around 5% of its workforce in October. The co-founder and CEO of the company attributed macroeconomic factors and the company’s plans to become more profitable by the end of the current fiscal year as the key reasons behind the layoffs. The company is currently valued at $22 million.
8. Blinkit
India-based instant delivery service provider founded in 2013
CEO: Albinder Dhindsa
Laid Off: Approximately 1600 employees
The instant delivery service platform Blinkit, formerly called Grofers, sacked over 5% of its workforce, which amounts to approximately 1600 employees. The majority of the layoffs took place in the cities of Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Mumbai. The company has cited cost-saving measures as the key reason behind the layoff.
9. Unilever
UK-based FMCG corporation
CEO: Alan Jope
Laid Off: 1500
The consumer goods conglomerate Unilever announced its decision to lay off 1,500 employees in January 2022. The decision to make this global in effect follows its inability to acquire GlaxoSmithKline's consumer health sector.
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10. Doordash
Online food ordering and delivering platform founded in 2013
CEO: Tony Xu
Laid Off: 1250 employees
DoorDash Inc., the US-based online food ordering and delivery service is laying off around 1,250 employees, accounting for 6% of its whole staff. The platform’s CEO has stated that the key reason for the layoffs is to control costs in order to deal with a decrease in demand.
Key Reasons Behind The Massive Layoffs
Below are some of the most common reasons behind the massive layoffs of 2022:
- The Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdown that followed.
- Financial challenges caused by growing inflation and the recession.
- The incompetence of the workforce.
- Modernization and reorganization of a business.
- The Russo-Ukrainian conflict that has impacted the global economy.
Global inflation is on the rise and amidst the rising recession and economic slowdown, big corporates have started laying off their employees for cost-effective measures. The declining economy is impacting everyone around the world, however, people working in the service sector are the ones severely affected by this.
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