Amazon May Lay Off 30,000 Employees After News The Company Plans Mass Automation, Report Says

Core Insights - Amazon is preparing to lay off up to 30,000 corporate workers, which represents nearly 10% of its corporate workforce, to address overhiring during the pandemic [1][2] - The layoffs could be among the largest in Amazon's history, potentially exceeding the 27,000 jobs cut in 2022 [2][5] - The company plans to replace a significant portion of its workforce with automation, including robots and AI, aiming to replace 600,000 workers by 2033 [1][2] Employment Context - Despite the corporate layoffs, Amazon intends to maintain its seasonal hiring levels, planning to hire 250,000 seasonal employees for the end-of-year shopping season [4] - The overall trend in the U.S. shows a record-low number of seasonal hires among employers, contrasting with Amazon's hiring plans [4] Industry Trends - The year has seen significant layoffs across U.S.-based companies, with nearly 1 million job cuts announced by September, the highest since the pandemic began [6] - Technological advancements, particularly in automation and AI, have been major contributors to job cuts, with 20,000 job losses attributed to automation and 17,375 specifically to AI [6]