E-commerce and tech giant Amazon has begun one of the largest Amazon layoffs since 2022. According to Reuters, the ecommerce company is planning to cut approximately 14,000 jobs as of the 28th of October 2025. However, the layoffs are a part of the company’s efforts to control expenses and correct over-hiring during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the demand surged.
Source revealed that managers of affected teams were given sessions on how to handle employee communication on October 27, ahead of the layoff emails, which started rolling out on October 28 morning (US Time).
An Amazon spokesperson declined to comment. Beth Galetti, Senior Vice President of People Experience and Technology (PXT), shared an internal message with employees. The message states, “The reduction we are sharing today is a continuation of this service to get even stronger by further reducing bureaucracy, removing layers, and shifting resources to ensure we are investing in our biggest bets and what matters most to our customers’ current and future needs.”
Who Will Be Affected by the Amazon Layoffs?
Amazon has around 1.55 million employees throughout the world, of which around 350,000 are corporate employees. However, the current cut will affect the following roles:
- Amazon Web Services (AWS)
- Devices and Services division
- Operations
- People Experience and Technology (PXT) division
Early reports suggest that the cutoff could extend to 30,000 employees. Hence, it would mark the largest workforce reduction of the company since 2023, when 27,000 jobs were eliminated.
Sources also indicate that 15 per cent of the HR division could be impacted as part of the ongoing restructuring.
Why Is Amazon Cutting Jobs Again?
The Amazon layoffs are mainly a part of the cost-cutting strategy to offset overhiring during the pandemic and improve operational efficiency. According to reports, CEO Andy Jassy aims to remove excess bureaucracy and managerial layers to make Amazon more agile. Moreover, the company has also introduced an anonymous complaint line to identify insufficiencies, which has already generated 1500 responses and resulted in 450 process improvements.
On top of that, Jessy is leading a transformation that highlights AI and automation to streamline the process. He said to employees in June, “Those who become conversant in AI, help us build and improve our AI capabilities internally and deliver for customers, will be well-positioned to have high impact and help us reinvent the company.”
This statement hinted that increased AI use could eventually reduce the total corporate workforce as the company is going to gain efficiency through automation.
Back-to-Office Policy Also Playing a Role
Amazon’s strict back-to-office policy is another factor behind this Amazon jobs cut. However, this policy requires employees to work from the office 5 days a week. According to Reuters, the policy did not generate the expected voluntary attribution to force the company to take stronger measures.
Some employees who failed to “swipe in daily” or live far from offices are being classified as having voluntarily quit and are leaving without severance pay, which is a cost-saving move for the company.
How AI and Efficiency Are Shaping Amazon’s Future
The increased focus of Amazon on artificial intelligence (AI) and automation has already started transforming its operations. Moreover, analysts believe the company is now realising AI-driven productivity gains. Hence, it enables it to function with fewer employees while maintaining the same results.
As of now, corporate roles are being cut in the Amazon layoffs. Still, it is planning to hire 250,000 seasonal workers for its holiday operation to match the recruitment levels of the last year. Hence, it indicates continued strengths in its logistics and retail segments.
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