Some companies are kicking off the new year by trimming staff as a steady labor market shows signs of cooling off.
The labor market flashed some warning signs at the end of last year. Hiring has slowed in recent months. Open positions also dropped at the end of 2023 compared with the beginning of the year, while employees are quitting at a lower rate than before the pandemic began.
The unemployment rate of 3.7% is near a 50-year low, and it is looking more likely that the U.S. will avoid a recession that many economists predicted last year.
Still, some businesses are reconsidering their staffing plans for the year after a slew of layoff announcements in 2022 and 2023.
Here’s a look at some of the companies that have announced layoffs so far this year.
Alphabet- Google laid off hundreds of employees in divisions including hardware and internal software tools, as the search giant continues to reverse its pandemic hiring spree.
Amazon- The e-commerce giant is eliminating hundreds of jobs across its film and television studio and Twitch streaming platform in an effort to rein in costs. Audible, an audiobook platform owned by Amazon, is also cutting 5% of its staff.
BlackRock- The world’s largest asset manager said it would layoff 600 employees, or around 3% of its total workforce. The company laid off about 3% in January 2023 as well.
Citigroup- The bank said it would eliminate 20,000 jobs by the end of 2026 as part of a multiyear restructuring plan.
Discord- The free messaging platform popular with video gamers said it is cutting 17% of its staff.
Duolingo- The language-learning software company cut 10% of its contractors and said it would use artificial intelligence to handle some content creation.
Rent the Runway- The fashion subscription company said it is cutting 37 roles, or about 10% of its staff.
Unity Software- The videogame company said it would lay off 1,800 employees, or about 25% of its workforce, following cuts by other gaming companies over the past year.
Universal Music Group- The music company plans to lay off around 100 to 300 employees globally this year, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Xerox- The printer maker said it would trim its workforce by 15%. Xerox had 20,500 employees at the end of 2022, according to regulatory filings.
