Following last year's layoffs of thousands of people, companies in the United States and Canada continued to lay off employees in 2024. Despite the fading concerns about economic recession, the prospect of a rate cut by the Federal Reserve remains uncertain. The wave of layoffs continues to sweep through the technology industry, with giants such as Amazon, Google, and Microsoft laying off employees. Additionally, media companies, financial firms, and retailers are also major players in the layoffs.
Here is a list of layoffs announced so far this year:
Technology Companies
Amazon (AMZN.US) layoffs include less than 5% of employees in the Buy with Prime department, 5% of employees in the audiobooks and podcasts department Audible, hundreds of employees in the streaming and studio operations department, 35% of employees in the streaming department Twitch, and hundreds of employees in the healthcare departments One Medical and Amazon Pharmacy. The company also announced layoffs in the cloud services department AWS, affecting hundreds of positions in sales, marketing, and global services, as well as hundreds of positions in the physical store technology team.
Layoffs conducted by Alphabet (GOOGL.US), Google's parent company, include dozens of employees in the new technology development department X Lab, hundreds of employees in the advertising sales team, hundreds of employees across teams responsible for Pixel, Nest, and Fitbit hardware, and most employees in the AR team.
Microsoft (MSFT.US) is laying off about 1,900 employees in the gaming departments Activision Blizzard and Xbox.
IBM (IBM.US) plans to lay off some employees in 2024 but will hire more positions centered around artificial intelligence.
Intel (INTC.US) previously stated it would lay off over 15%, about 17,500 people. The chip manufacturer is seeking to turn losses into profits, focusing on its struggling manufacturing business.
E-commerce company eBay (EBAY.YS) plans to lay off about 1,000 people, approximately 9% of its total workforce.
Video game software provider Unity Software (U.US) will lay off about 25%, or 1,800 job positions.
DocuSign (DOCU.US) plans to lay off about 6%, or 400 employees, mainly in the sales and marketing departments.
Snap (SNAP.US) plans to lay off about 528 people, 10% of its global workforce.
Salesforce (CRM.US) will lay off about 700 people, approximately 1% of its global workforce.
Networking giant Cisco (CSCO.US) is planning to restructure its business, including laying off thousands of people.
Autonomous driving technology company Aurora Innovation (AUR.US) is laying off 3%.
Canadian company BlackBerry (BB.US) plans to lay off more employees following the layoffs of about 200 people in the previous quarter.
Satellite radio company SiriusXM (SIRI.US) plans to lay off about 3%, or 160 people.
Bumble (BMBL.US) will lay off 350 people, approximately 30% of its workforce.
Automobile Manufacturers
Leading electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla (TSLA.US) is laying off over 10% of its global workforce. As the electric vehicle price war intensifies, Tesla is working to address the issue of declining sales
Lucid (LCID.US) announced a 6% layoff, about 400 employees. The electric vehicle industry is currently struggling to cope with the slowdown in growth.
Media Companies
Pixar Animation Studios, known for producing classic films such as &#34;Toy Story&#34; and &#34;Up,&#34; is laying off about 14% of its workforce as it scales back original streaming series development, affecting approximately 175 people. The studio is a subsidiary of Disney (DIS.US).
Sky, the UK media group under Comcast (CMCSA.US), plans to lay off about 1000 employees across various business units this year.
The Los Angeles Times plans to lay off 94 journalists.
Paramount Global (PARA.US) will lay off 15% of its workforce in the United States to address the decline in its cable television business. This layoff is part of Paramount's $500 million cost-cutting before merging with Skydance Media, affecting approximately 2000 people.
Business Insider plans to lay off about 8% of its workforce.
Canadian company Bell plans to lay off 4800 employees.
Financial Services
PayPal Holdings (PYPL.US) plans to lay off about 2500 employees this year, accounting for 9% of its global workforce.
Payment company Block (SQ.US) has started layoffs, but the specific scale is unknown.
Citigroup (Ci.US) plans to lay off 20,000 employees over the next two years. The company has announced plans to lay off 716 people in New York to achieve this goal.
Sources revealed that investment banking giant Morgan Stanley (MS.US) plans to lay off hundreds of employees in its wealth management division, affecting less than 1% of the department's staff.
Exchange operator Nasdaq (NDAQ.US) plans to cut hundreds of jobs as it integrates financial technology company Adenza into its operations.
Asset management company BlackRock (BLK.US) plans to lay off about 3%, but expects the layoffs to be larger by the end of 2024.
Retail and Consumer Industry
Retail giant Walmart (WMT.US) plans to lay off hundreds of employees at its headquarters and relocate most of its remote workers in the US and Canada to three offices.
Cosmetics giant Estée Lauder (EL.US) plans to lay off 3% to 5% of its global workforce.
Wayfair (W.US) plans to lay off 1650 people, about 13% of its workforce.
US department store chain Macy's (M.US) will lay off 2350 employees and close 5 stores.
Levi Strauss &amp; Co. (LEVI.US) plans to lay off 10%-15% of its global workforce.
Hershey's (HSY.US) restructuring plan will affect less than 5% of its employees.
Sportswear giant Nike (NKE.US) will lay off about 2%, or over 1600 positions. Following a decline in profits this year, Nike aims to reduce costs. As part of Nike's ongoing $2 billion cost-saving plan, its footwear brand Converse will also undergo layoffs.
Healthcare
Pharmaceuticals
Novavax Inc. (NVAX.US) is planning to lay off approximately 12% of its workforce.
Consumer healthcare company Kenvue (KVUE.US) is set to reduce its global workforce by 4%.
Manufacturing
Defense contractor Lockheed Martin Corporation (LMT.US) plans to cut 1% of its workforce.
Spirit AeroSystems (SPR.US) is laying off hundreds of employees in Wichita, Kansas, as the company is facing issues related to high debt and production slowdown from its major customer Boeing.
US defense contractor L3Harris (LHX.US) reduced its workforce by 5% in April this year to streamline operations and save costs.
Logistics
United Parcel Service (UPS.US) is planning to lay off 12,000 employees to reduce costs.
FedEx (FDX.US) is planning to cut 1,700 to 2,000 back-office jobs in Europe as the parcel delivery company struggles with weak freight demand.
Natural Resources
US natural gas producer Chesapeake Energy Corporation (CHK.US) is undergoing layoffs after completing the divestment of its oil assets last year.
US mining company Piedmont Lithium (PLL.US) is laying off 27% of its workforce as part of cost-cutting measures.
Canadian oil and gas pipeline company TC Energy Corporation (TRP.US) has let go of some employees as part of its previously announced plan to integrate its natural gas pipeline division.
Canadian crude oil pipeline operator Enbridge (ENB.US) has announced plans to lay off 650 employees, representing 5% of its workforce, in order to reduce costs

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The wave of layoffs in North America continues, with not only tech giants but also many well-known companies significantly reducing costs. The layoffs mainly involve the tech industry, with companies such as Amazon, Google, and Microsoft laying off employees. Additionally, industries such as media, finance, and retail are also experiencing a large number of layoffs. The reason for the layoffs is that companies are uncertain about the economic outlook. Despite reduced concerns about an economic recession, the prospect of interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve remains unclear. These layoff announcements have been gradually released since the beginning of this year, involving companies such as Amazon, Google, Microsoft, IBM, Intel, eBay, Unity Software, DocuSign, and Snap. The large scale of the layoffs reflects the current economic uncertainty

- Numerous companies in the U.S. and Canada continue layoffs in 2024, especially in the tech industry with giants like Amazon, Google, and Microsoft reducing staff. Layoffs also affect media, finance, and retail sectors. Amazon's layoffs include various departments like Buy with Prime, Audible, Twitch, and AWS, impacting hundreds of employees.
- Google's parent company, Alphabet, is cutting staff in X Lab, advertising sales, and hardware teams. Microsoft is reducing around 1900 positions in its gaming division. IBM plans partial layoffs but aims to hire more AI-focused roles.
- Financial services like PayPal and Citigroup, along with retail giants Walmart and cosmetics leader Estée Lauder, are also implementing workforce reductions to streamline operations and cut costs amidst economic uncertainties.

"Layoff wave" sweeps North America! In addition to tech giants, dozens of well-known companies are also significantly cutting costs