Adam Silipsky, CEO, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Beth Galetti, HR head, have reportedly sent memos to staff in Canada, Costa Rica and the US, informing them of the layoffs, which will affect the cloud and HR units this time.
These layoffs are part of the job cuts announced earlier, that were to affect 9,000. About 18,000 roles were already impacted in the first round of layoffs.
The company’s impacted employees in other regions or locations will also be informed with time. Since the process is dependent on local processes and involves negotiations and consultations with local employee representatives, it may take time to let the affected employees know.
Amazon wishes to identify the priority areas and invest its resources in those areas.
As part of this strategy, many employees have been shifted to other teams or projects, while some roles have been eliminated.
The health-focused Halo division has also been wound up, rendering employees of the Halo team jobless. Halo Band, Halo View and Halo Rise devices are no longer available on the website.
Of late, Amazon has laid off in big numbers, probably for the first time in the 29 years since its inception. The senior executives of the company are discussing future investments, areas of focus and priorities, as well as customer demands / needs, for the long-term success of the company’s businesses.
In the US, the impacted employees are being granted severance packages inclusive of a 60-day, non-working transitional period with full pay and benefits. They will also be given several weeks of additional severance basis their tenure, along with a separation payment, transitional benefits, and help with outplacement.
