[News] Tech Giants Meta, Microsoft, and Amazon Plan Job Cuts in Early 2025

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Major tech companies are preparing to announce a new wave of layoffs. According to CNBC, citing Bloomberg, Meta plans to reduce its workforce by 5%, focusing on employees classified as “lowest-performing.”

Meta is not the only company taking such measures. Another report from CNBC, citing Business Insider, reveals that Microsoft is also planning layoffs, using performance metrics to determine which employees will be affected. Similarly, Amazon is also using performance reviews to decide who will be laid off, as the report from Fortune notes.

Meta’s Workforce Reduction Plans

Meta currently employs over 72,000 people; therefore, a 5% reduction could affect about 3,600 jobs, which is its largest workforce reduction since cutting 21,000 jobs—nearly 25% of its total staff—across 2022 and 2023, as highlighted by CNBC.

According to Bloomberg, Meta’s Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg outlined in a memo to employees that the company is preparing for an “intense year” focused on artificial intelligence, smart glasses, and the future of social media. The workforce reduction is part of Meta’s strategy to align with these priorities and address upcoming challenges.

As mentioned in the memo referenced by Bloomberg, employees in the U.S. will be notified of their layoffs on February 10, while those in other countries will receive updates at a later date.

Microsoft’s Layoff Strategy

Similarly, Microsoft is also preparing to announce a new round of layoffs, as noted by CNBC, citing Business Insider. According to the report, Microsoft plans to cut less than 1% of employees across departments based on performance metrics.

Though the scale of layoffs seems to be relatively limited, it is worth noting that Microsoft had gone through major staff downsizing not long ago. As highlighted by CNBC, in early 2023, Microsoft cut 10,000 jobs and streamlined leases. By January 2024, its gaming unit let go of 1,900 employees, three months after finalizing the USD 75.4 billion Activision Blizzard deal, to reduce redundancies.

Amazon’s Managerial Layoff Plans

Last year, Amazon announced plans to cut around 14,000 managerial positions to improve the ratio of individual contributors to managers by at least 15% by the end of Q1 2025, according to a report from The Economic Times. The report, citing The Information, further notes that these layoffs will exclusively affect corporate employees.

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