E-commerce giant eBay has followed the footsteps of Google, Amazon, Meta, and other tech companies in cutting down its workforce to reduce costs. The company announced in an email to its staff that it would lay off about 1,000 employees, which accounted for 9 per cent of its full-time workforce. But that’s not it as the company is planning more rounds of layoffs in “in the next few months.”
According to reports, layoffs at eBay have been announced, despite the company making $1.3 billion in profit last quarter and labelling it as “another quarter of solid results.” The company asserts that it needs changes. In a letter shared with employees– reported by The Guardian, eBay CEO Jamie Iannone stated, “While we are making progress against our strategy, our overall headcount and expenses have outpaced the growth of our business.”
“To address this, we are implementing organisational changes to align and consolidate certain teams, aiming to enhance the end-to-end experience and better meet the needs of our customers worldwide,” he further wrote.
Notably, one of the prominent reasons for the tech industry to reduce its workforce is overhiring. Many companies over hired employees after the pandemic. However, by the end of 2022, a wave of mass layoffs hit as companies decide to restructure and take cost-cutting measures at the expense of their workforce.
And the wave of layoffs is still continuing as big giants like Google and Amazon continue to reduce their workforce from across the departments.
Google: The company laid off over 1,000 employees from various departments, such as hardware and engineering, to reorganise and focus on key projects. Its CEO, Sundar Pichai, also suggested that more layoffs are likely in the future, as the company deals with increasing competition and regulatory challenges. Its subsidiary, YouTube, also eliminated around 100 jobs, mainly in the areas of music, sports, media, film, and TV, to adjust to the decline in ad revenue and the rise of competitors like TikTok.
Amazon: The company announced job cuts in its Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios divisions as part of its plan to improve its operational efficiency.
Meta: The company behind Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, also trimmed its headcount by 60, mostly in technical program management, as it strives to simplify its structure and pursue its metaverse vision.
Riot Games: The maker of the popular video game League of Legends, also joined the layoff spree by slashing 11 per cent of its staff, or about 530 employees, as a result of cost-cutting and restructuring efforts.
TikTok: The company joined the growing list of tech companies implementing layoffs, with around 60 employees let go in a bid to lower costs.
Source: India Today
