Job worries at Amazon as online retail giant plans to cut around 16,000 roles in fresh round of lay-offs
Staff at Amazon have been told the retail technology giant plans to cut around 16,000 jobs globally in a bid to streamline operations.
The latest round of lay-offs come just three months after Amazon axed around 14,000 jobs.
It is understood the majority of jobs impacted by the latest cuts will be in the US but the UK operation will see some jobs axed.
Amazon, which has a large robotic fulfilment centre in Sutton Coldfield, has not disclosed how many UK workers will be affected.
Beth Galetti, senior vice president of people experience and technology at Amazon, told staff in a blog post: “As I shared in October, we’ve been working to strengthen our organisation by reducing layers, increasing ownership and removing bureaucracy.
“Some of you might ask if this is the beginning of a new rhythm – where we announce broad reductions every few months. That’s not our plan.”
The announcement, which came after redundancy plans were accidentally shared with some staff in error on Tuesday, comes amid a backdrop of growing AI adoption within corporate operations.
Last year, boss Andy Jassy suggested Amazon was likely to reduce its head count over the coming years as it rolls out the use of artificial intelligence for many tasks.
The business employed around 1.57 million at the end of September last year, with about 350,000 across its corporate workforce, while the majority of employees work in its warehouses.
It employs around 75,000 people in the UK.
The GMB union, which represents around 2,000 Amazon workers across the West Midlands region and thousands more across the UK, has responded to news of the proposed job cuts.
Rachel Fagan, GMB Organiser, said: “Amazon is showing itself for what it is; a company that cannot be trusted to do the right thing by working people in the UK.
“Bosses are overseeing thousands of job losses which will cause huge damage in towns and cities across the country.
“Now is the time for decision makers to recognise Amazon as a company fixated on eye-watering profits at the expense of workers and local people.”
Earlier this week, Amazon confirmed it was closing its remaining Amazon Fresh and Go retail stores in the US, focusing instead on its Whole Foods store business.
Last September, Amazon announced the closure of its 19 Amazon Fresh stores across the UK, with around 250 workers affected.
