Growth of the streaming business leads to job cuts at companies like Disney and Netflix

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.

Uncertainty in the workplace remains unnoticed by an employee until the company notifies them via message or email. Receiving a termination letter immediately upon waking up raises serious career concerns. However, companies are developing increasingly new methods of downsizing.

These methods can take the form of an early morning termination notice, a decision made during an appraisal, or an HR offer of a financial package in exchange for leaving the job. In some cases, the employee has the right to choose to leave, while in others, the company makes the decision independently.

Microsoft offered around 60,000 eligible employees in India, the US, the UK, and Canada the option of a voluntary buyout. Through this program, employees can leave the company while receiving financial support. This step was taken during a period when Microsoft is actively investing in artificial intelligence infrastructure and adapting its workforce to business needs.

A question people often ask is whether all 60,000 employees will be laid off. The answer is no. A voluntary departure differs from a forced reduction. Nevertheless, this offer reignites familiar workplace anxiety: what happens when a company decides it needs a different workforce composition?

Downsizing can take various forms—from early morning termination letters and buyouts to performance-related reductions and major organizational changes. Each reduction has its own solutions, uncertainties, and consequences for the people involved. It is necessary to understand four aspects of layoffs that every employee should know.

A reduction does not mean the company suddenly fires employees. Sometimes it offers them the chance to leave by providing a financial package. Other steps are taken under the guise of a performance review or organizational transformation. Recent events in the tech sector show that layoff methods are diverse, and each situation presents unique challenges for employees.

Different forms of downsizing include Microsoft's voluntary departure offers, termination letters received by Oracle employees early in the morning, potential layoffs following performance reviews at Qualcomm, and changes within Adidas' technology division. Therefore, it is crucial for employees to understand the differences between all these situations and how they might affect their careers.

Microsoft offered a voluntary exit proposal to its eligible employees in 2026. Under this program, employees meeting criteria in certain internal levels 70 or below, in selected departments of the company, were offered the opportunity to leave in exchange for financial assistance. This offer applies to certain organizations in India, the US, the UK, and Canada, but not all Microsoft employees are candidates. This is significantly different from standard company layoffs. With a buyout, the employee gets the option to leave under contract terms, whereas in a forced layoff, the company itself decides on the end of employment.

Before accepting such an offer, an employee should carefully consider several points. These include the size of the package, the likelihood of finding new employment, health insurance, future financial needs, and the time required to find a new position. Receiving a financial package does not guarantee that the decision to leave will be easy.

Furthermore, some employees are suddenly informed of a company reduction. In Oracle's case in September 2026, some employees were sent an email early in the morning notifying them of the termination of their positions due to company changes. The company also provided information about the last working day in the letter. The company did not disclose the total number of affected employees to the public during this period.

In such a situation, an employee may face many questions after being let go. They need to find out the severance pay amount, when the debt payment will be made, when access to company systems will be closed, and how to start looking for a new job.

The main difference between a buyout and such a termination notice is that with a buyout, the employee may have a choice, whereas with receiving a termination letter, the decision to end employment has already been made by the company.

There is also a form of reduction that takes into account employee performance evaluations. Reports have emerged regarding global job cuts at Qualcomm following the annual employee review in 2026. According to reports, CEO Cristiano Amon spoke about the need to strengthen a culture of performance and attention to areas that consistently fail to meet expectations. The company has not disclosed the number of positions that will be affected by the proposed reduction.

However, it is important to understand that a performance-based reduction and general organizational changes are not the same thing. In organizational changes, an employee's position may be eliminated even if their performance was high. Whereas in performance-based decisions, the employee...

Reasons for layoffs in companies are not always solely linked to financial difficulties or business downturns. Currently, the evaluation of employees' work, productivity, and results also plays a significant role in decisions regarding staff reductions. Qualcomm has developed a plan to reduce its global workforce after conducting an annual personnel assessment. This move once again raises the question of whether corporations use employee performance metrics as a basis for dismissals.

Following the annual review of its employees, Qualcomm announced its intention to cut jobs worldwide. In a message addressed to employees, CEO Cristiano Amon stated that the goal of this initiative is to foster a strong culture of performance and improve areas where the company is not meeting expected results. Employees can expect notification of layoffs in November. The company has not yet disclosed the exact number of employees whose positions will be affected. Decisions on layoffs will take into account both business needs and organizational priorities, as well as the skills and specialization of the personnel.

Typically, companies reduce staff in response to the need to lower costs, changes in business, or the disappearance of a need for a particular department. This can be called traditional downsizing. In such cases, an employee's dismissal may occur due to a change in their role or department, rather than due to their personal performance. In contrast, when downsizing is based on performance, the employee's work evaluation, effectiveness, ability to meet goals, and overall level of productivity can be used as a criterion. The company has the right to decide who to retain and who to offer alternative employment.

However, both types of reductions can happen simultaneously. For example, if a company is reducing staff to cut costs, it may also conduct performance and qualification assessments of these employees in parallel.

There is a significant difference between these approaches: in traditional downsizing, the position or department itself may disappear. Conversely, in performance-based downsizing, the position may remain, but the company may decide to replace the employee currently holding that position. For instance, if a department continues to function, but management believes that the performance of some employees does not meet established expectations, it may consider replacing those individuals with other workers.

It is important to note that a reference to performance by the company does not mean that the laid-off employee had poor results. Organizational needs and other business reasons may also underlie the reduction.

Processes such as employee performance reviews, efficiency improvement plans, and personnel ratings have been used by companies for a long time. They help assess employee work and identify areas needing improvement. Since companies are now mentioning performance and effectiveness when explaining layoff reasons, it becomes critically important to understand whether an employee is leaving due to the elimination of their role or if their termination is based on an evaluation of their work. However, the processes and reasons for layoffs differ in each company.

If the retention of a job is tied to the results of a performance evaluation, it increases the significance of annual appraisals and set goals for employees. In this case, employees naturally raise questions about the standards by which their work is evaluated. It is also important that companies provide employees with clear feedback on their results and apply uniform standards across all teams. Managers' opinions, changing work needs, and company priorities can also influence performance evaluations.

Overall, economic downturn or cost reduction cannot be the sole reason for layoffs. In some cases, the evaluation of employee skills and performance also becomes part of the decision-making process. Therefore, it is crucial for employees to understand what the company expects from them and on what basis their work is being assessed.