The fear of job loss concerns not only the employees who are laid off but also those who have avoided the wave of reductions. A similar atmosphere prevails in the technology sector, where the question of who will be the next candidate for reduction constantly arises.
Large companies such as Amazon, Meta, Oracle, and Uber have conducted staff reductions at different times. It is noteworthy that in many of these companies, the reductions did not happen all at once, but rather in stages. This raises the question of why companies prefer to conduct reductions multiple times instead of one large-scale reduction.
Frequent staff reductions do not always indicate a new financial crisis. Sometimes companies plan a large-scale cost reduction or organizational changes but implement them gradually across different departments and regions. According to Srishti Nardji from Deloitte USI, some firms announce major restructuring but implement it in parts. In other cases, various business units reduce staff according to their needs and priorities. This can happen, for example, if demand for a certain product decreases or if responsibilities overlap between two teams.
Reductions at Amazon are an example of this process. The company cut about 14 thousand employees in October 2025 and then announced a reduction of 16 thousand corporate jobs in January 2026. According to the report, the January reduction was part of a restructuring process that began several months earlier. While changes in some teams were completed in October, in others they continued until January. After that, the company cut another about 1000 employees in October, and it was recently reported that there was a reduction of up to 250 jobs.
Regarding Meta, the company planned to eliminate about 8000 jobs in April-May, which accounted for approximately 10 percent of its global workforce. Oracle reduced about 21 thousand employees worldwide over the 12 months leading up to May 2026. Furthermore, Uber announced a plan to cut about 3300 jobs in September. Workday also cut about 500 employees in September, marking its second reduction in 2026. According to the report, from January 1 to September 23, 2026, a reduction of about 176 thousand jobs was recorded in various sectors, including technology, finance, retail, and manufacturing.
It is generally believed that if a company's business is doing well, employee jobs will be safe. However, there is not always a direct link between a company's financial performance and its hiring policy. Sometimes, despite revenue growth, companies reduce staff to increase profits, improve productivity, or invest in future projects. According to Sanjoy Dovrah, a senior manager at a global FMCG company, quarterly results show how the company performed in business, while decisions regarding employees depend on where management intends to direct capital, skills, and resources in the future.
Nevertheless, staff reduction itself does not make a company more efficient. Multiple restructurings can negatively affect employee trust and corporate culture. Employees who remain in the company often have to take on even greater responsibility.
Furthermore, companies are reducing staff due to the growing use of artificial intelligence. AI and automation have affected not only the ways companies operate but also hiring needs. Companies are now reviewing what positions and skills they require.
However, not every reduction is linked to AI. According to Ronit Mukjerri, assistant professor of economics at Ashoka University, in companies implementing AI, recruitment for some existing positions may decrease, and the nature of required skills may change. On the other hand, new jobs may emerge thanks to new products and businesses created with the help of AI. The overall effect will depend on how many new jobs appear compared to the number of old ones disappearing.
The report indicates that some tasks related to paperwork, customer support, and coding may be more susceptible to automation. Nevertheless, the overall impact of AI on employment in the future will be determined by how many opportunities for new jobs companies create.
These changes may also affect the Indian technology sector. This could particularly complicate the situation for experienced employees whose skills are tied to a specific technology, client, or company. According to Indeed, in the three months leading up to June 2026, the number of software development vacancies decreased by 12.3 percent.
