More layoffs at Amazon, 15% of HR staff to be fired

Amazon plans to slash 15 per cent of its human resources (HR) personnel in a new round of layoffs. The decision is part of a strategic shift toward artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud operations.

The HR department, known internally as the People eXperience and Technology (PXT) team, employs over 10,000 people worldwide, including a recruiting team, technical personnel, and other standard HR jobs. However, the report did not specify how many employees will be affected or when the cuts would take place.

Other sections of Amazon's core consumer business are also expected to be impacted, Fortune reports.

Earlier this year, the corporation fired employees from its consumer devices unit, Wondery podcast branch, and Amazon Web Services.

More than USD 100 billion will be invested in capital investments in AI and cloud infrastructure by 2025.

The corporation intends to reduce its corporate headcount as AI adoption boosts efficiency, Fortune reports.

Notably, CEO Andy Jassy has underlined the importance of AI in Amazon's future, citing its ability to drive efficiency and automation.

Jassy oversaw the largest layoffs in Amazon's history, which occurred from late 2022 to early 2023, when the company cut 27,000 corporate positions. Many other corporations, in addition to Amazon, reduced their workforce during that period.

In an official mail, which was also published on Amazon's corporate blog, Jassy told employees, "Those who embrace this change, 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."

He had also mentioned that not everyone in the company will be accommodated when the changes happen. "We expect that this will reduce our total corporate workforce as we get efficiency gains from using AI extensively across the company," his email added.