 "Will 2025 be another year of layoffs?")
The year 2025 began with a bunch of companies laying people off.
Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Facebook are among a number of companies that have all handed out pink slips in January.
According to reports, thousands of people have lost their jobs thus far across over two dozen firms.
But will 2025 be another year of layoffs?
Let’s take a closer look:
What happened?
First, let’s take a brief look at the previous years.
As per Exchange4media, data from layoff.fyi showed that 546 firms laid off 152,074 employees in 2024.
Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, IBM were among those that culled their ranks of employees.
The years 2023 and 2022 witnessed 2,64,220 and 1,65,269 employees lose their jobs.
As per The Times of India, Amazon alone cut 27,000 employees over the past three years.
Data from layoffs.fyi showed that 31 tech companies have fired 7,000 employees in 2025.
In 2025, Microsoft was the first major firm to confirm it would cut jobs.
Business Insider reported that underperforming employees would be examined carefully.
“At Microsoft we focus on high performance talent,” a Microsoft spokesperson told the outlet. “We are always working on helping people learn and grow. When people are not performing, we take the appropriate action.”
However, the company has not confirmed how many employees would be fired.
CNBC quoted Drew Herdener, who oversees public relations and corporate responsibility, as writing in a memo that this was part of a wider look at the company’s “current org design.”
“As we examined our current org design and decided on the shifts outlined above, we identified some roles that were too narrowly scoped or that introduced unnecessary layers, where we couldn’t solve the challenge by flattening the structure or shifting workloads,” Herdener wrote. “To address this and do the right thing for the business, we’re eliminating a small number of roles in Communications and Sustainability. This is a difficult decision to make and one that my leadership team and I do not take lightly.”
However, there is some good news for India.
This, after Microsoft India and South Asia chief Puneet Chandok said the company’s India employees would not be in the firing line.
Google too is getting rid of employees.
The company has offered a voluntary exit scheme for US-based employees in its Platforms & Devices organisation – which handles products such as Android, Pixel, Chrome, and Nest.
“The Platforms & Devices team is offering a voluntary exit program that provides US-based Googlers working on this team the ability to voluntarily leave the company with a severance package,” a Google spokesperson told the newspaper.
Business Insider quoted Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg as saying he has “decided to raise the bar on performance management.”
Zuckerberg in an internal memo said he will “move out low-performers.”
Zuckerberg previously said his company will make “more extensive performance-based cuts” in this year’s performance review cycle.
He said employees will be notified on February 10.
Meta has cut over 21,000 workers since 2022.
Workday on Wednesday it will cut around 1,750 jobs, or 8.5 per cent of its current workforce, as the human capital management firm invests heavily in artificial intelligence to counter a softer macroeconomic environment.
Workday CEO Carl Eschenbach said the layoffs are necessary to prioritize investments such as artificial intelligence, while also freeing up resources to expand the company’s presence in different countries.
“I realize this is tough news, and it affects all of us—the Workmates who are leaving and those who’ll continue with us. I encourage you to work from home or head home, if you’re already in the office,” Eschenbach said as per USA Today.
As of January 31 last year, the company had around 18,800 employees.
Why is this happening?
As per Business Insider, the layoffs come in the backdrop of the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
The outlet quoted a recent World Economic Forum survey as saying that 41 per cent of firms worldwide said they are likely to bring down the number of employees over the next five years due to AI.
Tomasz Noetzel, a senior analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, told Economic Times in January, “Any jobs involving routine, repetitive tasks are at risk.”
He said that back-office, middle-office, and customer service roles are particularly susceptible to layoffs.
Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan, said, “AI is likely to make dramatic improvements in workers’ quality of life, even if it eliminates some positions.”
Eric Brown, CEO of Imperio Consulting, explained the situation, added, “Tech and consumer-focused sectors often feel the brunt of market volatility first. When budgets shrink, businesses curb spending on new tools and marketing. Companies with direct exposure to tight capital markets are more likely to see employees facing the chop.”
“We may still see layoffs in 2025, but they might not match the scale of 2024. Some companies have already adjusted their workforces to prepare for market shifts, and others could tighten their belts if forecasts remain negative.”
With inputs from agencies
 "Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?")
 "As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland")
 "Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar")
 "Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe")
 "Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?")
 "As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland")
 "Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar")
 "Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe")
