Amazon Says 14,000 Job Cuts Were About ‘Culture,’ Not Cost-Cutting
Amazon’s decision to lay off 14,000 employees was not financially motivated, according to chief executive Andy Jassy, who described the move as a necessary step to preserve the company’s culture and agility.
Speaking during Amazon’s quarterly earnings call on Thursday, Jassy said the layoffs were “not really financially driven, and it’s not even really AI driven, not right now – it’s culture.” His comments came as the company reported a 13% year-on-year increase in revenue to $180 billion.
Jassy explained that rapid expansion over the past few years — including new business lines, additional offices, and rising headcount — had created excess management layers that slowed down decision-making and diluted accountability.
“As we’ve grown, you end up with a lot more people and a lot more layers,” he said. “Sometimes, without realizing it, you can weaken the ownership of the people who are actually doing the work. It can slow you down as a leadership team.”
Amazon’s workforce peaked at over 1.6 million employees in 2021, before falling to around 1.5 million last year, according to company filings. The latest cuts are part of Jassy’s broader effort to make the tech giant operate more like a “startup” despite its global scale.
“We are committed to operating like the world’s largest startup,” he added. “That means removing layers.”
While Amazon framed the layoffs as a cultural reset aimed at improving efficiency ahead of future AI integration, the move has reignited concerns about automation and job security across the tech sector.
Despite the workforce reductions, investors responded positively to the company’s results – Amazon shares jumped 13% in after-hours trading following the announcement.
