Amazon is preparing for another major round of job cuts, with the e-commerce and cloud giant expected to lay off around 16,000 employees starting today (January 27), according to multiple media reports. The move is part of a broader plan to eliminate nearly 30,000 roles by mid-2026. If that happens, it will be the largest workforce reduction in the company’s three-decade history.
The fresh layoffs are likely to raise concerns among Amazon’s teams in India, as key business units including Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Amazon Prime are expected to be affected. According to an Indian Express report, employees in People Experience and Technology, the company’s HR-focused division, are also said to be in the line of fire. However, the full scope of the cuts has not yet been made public.
Surpassing 2022 and 2023 layoffs
If completed as planned, the layoffs would surpass the roughly 27,000 jobs Amazon cut across 2022 and 2023. The company currently employs about 1.57 million people globally. The reductions are reportedly concentrated on its white-collar corporate workforce, which numbers around 3,50,000 employees.
The majority of Amazon’s staff continue to work in warehouses and fulfillment centers, which are not the primary focus of the cuts.
What has Amazon CEO said about restructuring earlier
Chief executive Andy Jassy has previously said the restructuring is less about financial pressure or artificial intelligence and more about simplifying the organisation. Speaking during Amazon’s third-quarter earnings call, Jassy said the company had accumulated excessive layers of management and internal processes over time. “It’s culture,” he told analysts, adding that bureaucracy had crept in as the workforce expanded.
Earlier in 2025, Jassy had also indicated that Amazon’s corporate workforce would gradually shrink as the company gains efficiency from AI and automation tools, even as it continues to invest heavily in technology.
The full 30,000 job cuts would account for nearly 10% of Amazon’s corporate workforce. Workers affected in an earlier round of layoffs in October were kept on the payroll for 90 days to explore internal roles or external opportunities. That transition period expired on Monday (January 26), likely clearing the way for the latest round of cuts.