More tech job layoffs announced at Google, Amazon, and Snap

Some major tech companies announced another round of job cuts on Thursday. Google, Amazon and Snap are among the companies continuing to downsize. 

Analysts we spoke with say these companies are simply evaluating their bottom line and this round of layoffs is most likely connected to an uncertain economic outlook.  

"The data that’s come out has shown that the tech industry has been laying off people really pretty aggressively," said Ian Sherr, a Tech Reporter and Analyst.    

Google, Amazon, Snap and Zillow say they’re making more cuts to their workforce. Neither Google nor Amazon disclosed how many jobs were being cut this time. Sherr says the cuts are most likely continuing fallout from the pandemic.  

"The economy has shifted a lot over those last four years. We’ve seen inflation come up, now we’ve seen it start coming down. We’ve seen interest rates going up, all of these types of things. So, it is somewhat part of the natural cycle to see layoffs in some companies," Sherr said.   

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Amazon’s most recent layoffs will affect employees in Europe, Latin America and North America. This is also the fifth round of job cuts for Google since September and the 3rd round of cuts for its parent company, Alphabet.  

"The nine-county Bay Area lost almost 17,000 jobs last month, which was the worst monthly job loss we saw Omicron hit in late 2020 and early 2021," said Abby Raisz, from the Bay Area Council Economic Institute.    

Both Snap and Zillow are also cutting about two dozen jobs from their workforce. Raisz says interest rates are at a 22-year high and companies will continue to make cost-cutting decisions.   

"Still, many companies are making decisions around these high interest rates which, of course, keeps the economy growing more slowly and reduces companies' need to hire more people or retain people," Raisz said.  

Sherr also says that some layoffs aren’t always related to economic issues. He sometimes says companies may have a division or project that’s no longer viable, so they decide to cut those jobs.