Corporate America lays off thousands of employees as recession worries mount

U.S. companies, from tech majors to consumer firms, are bracing for a potential economic downturn by shrinking their employee base to streamline operations.

According to a report, job cuts announced by U.S.-based employers jumped 13% to 33,843 in October, the highest since February 2021.

Here are some of the major job cuts announced in recent weeks:

Amazon.com Inc

The e-commerce giant has laid off some employees in its devices group as a person familiar with the company said it still targeted around 10,000 job cuts, including in its retail division and human resources.

Meta Platforms Inc

Woman holds smartphone with Meta logo in front of a displayed Facebook’s new rebrand logo Meta in this illustration picture taken October 28, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

The Facebook parent said it would cut 13% of its workforce, or more than 11,000 employees, in one of the biggest tech layoffs this year as it grapples with a weak advertising market and mounting costs.

DoorDash Inc

The food delivery firm, which enjoyed a growth surge during the pandemic, said it was reducing its corporate headcount by about 1,250 employees.

AMC Networks Inc

The cable TV network said it would cut about 20% of its U.S. workforce, as it announced Chief Executive Officer Christina Spade had stepped down less than three months into the role.

Kraken

The cryptocurrency exchange said it would cut its global workforce by 30%, or about 1,100 employees, citing tough market conditions that have crippled demand for digital assets this year.

Citigroup Inc

Bloomberg News reported that the bank eliminated dozens of jobs across its investment banking division as a dealmaking slump continues to weigh on Wall Street’s biggest banks.

Morgan Stanley

The Wall Street powerhouse is expected to start a fresh round of layoffs globally in the coming weeks, Reuters reported on Nov. 3, as the dealmaking business takes a hit.

Intel Corp

Chief Executive Officer Pat Gelsinger told Reuters “people actions” would be part of a cost-reduction plan. The chipmaker said it would reduce costs by $3 billion in 2023.

The adjustments would start in the fourth quarter, Gelsinger said but did not specify how many employees would be affected.

Microsoft Corp

The software giant laid off under 1,000 employees across several divisions in October, Axios reported, citing a source.

Johnson & Johnson

The pharmaceutical giant has said it might cut some jobs amid inflationary pressure and a strong dollar, with CFO Joseph Wolk saying the healthcare conglomerate is looking at “right-sizing” itself.

Twitter Inc

A view of the Twitter logo at its corporate headquarters in San Francisco, California, U.S. October 27, 2022. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

The social media company laid off half its workforce across teams ranging from communications and content curation to product and engineering following Elon Musk’s $44 billion takeover.

However, Bloomberg later reported Twitter was reaching out to dozens of employees who lost their jobs, asking them to return.

Lyft Inc

The ride-hailing firm said it would lay off 13% of its workforce, or about 683 employees, after cutting 60 jobs earlier this year and freezing hiring in September.

Warner Bros Discovery

Bloomberg News reported that the film subsidiary Warner Bros. Pictures is planning to cut several jobs in distribution and marketing that will reduce headcount by 5% to 10%.

Beyond Meat Inc

The vegan meat maker said it plans to cut 200 jobs this year, with the layoffs expected to save about $39 million.

Stripe Inc

According to an email from the company’s founders, the digital payments firm is cutting its headcount by about 14% and will have about 7,000 employees after the layoffs.

Chime Financial Inc

A spokesperson said that the online banking firm has laid off 12% of its employees, or about 160 jobs.

Opendoor Technologies Inc

Chief Executive Officer Eric Wu said that the property-selling platform is laying off about 550 employees, adding that the company had already reduced its workforce by more than 830 positions.

Phillips 66

The refinery reduced its employee headcount by over 1,100 as it seeks to meet its 2022 cost savings target of $500 million. The reductions were communicated to employees in late October.

Chesapeake Energy Corp

According to Reuters, the U.S. shale gas producer cut about 3% of its workforce as the company readies for selling South Texas oil properties.

Seagate Technology Holdings Plc

The memory chip firm announced a restructuring plan, including reducing worldwide headcount by about 8%, or 3,000 employees.

Arrival SA

The EV startup plans to further “right-size” the organization, which could have a “sizable impact” on its global workforce, mostly in the UK.

The company in July said it might cut up to 30% of its workforce in restructuring.

Coinbase Global

The cryptocurrency exchange planned to cut over 60 jobs in its recruiting and institutional onboarding teams.

The move marks the second round of jobs cuts at the company this year and comes at a time when cryptocurrencies have been roiled by extreme volatility as investors dump risky assets.

Walt Disney Co

The media giant is planning to freeze hiring and cut some jobs, according to a company memo seen by Reuters.

Roku Inc

The video-streaming device maker said it would reduce its headcount by 5%, or about 200 employees, due to “current economic conditions”.

Cisco Systems Inc

The networking and collaboration solutions company said it would undertake a restructuring, which could impact roughly 5% of its workforce. The effort will begin in the second quarter of the fiscal year 2023 and will cost the company $600 million.

HP Inc

The computing devices maker said it expected to cut up to 6,000 jobs by the end of fiscal 2025.

CNN

Warner Bros Discovery-owned CNN’s top boss Chris Licht informed employees in an all-staff memo that job cuts were underway.

Buzzfeed Inc

The online media company said it would cut 12% of its workforce. As of Dec. 31 last year, the company had 1,522 employees in six countries.