It seems that there is quite a bit of optimism that came out of the low year 2022 – 2023 can’t be worse, right? Well, that’s not the case for Amazon employees. The CEO of the company, Andy Jesse wrote a Blog post It is explained that the company will “eliminate” 18,000 jobs that will affect several teams, but mainly the Amazon Stores and People Experience and Technology (PXT) Solutions teams.

With the cost of living rising due to inflation, job cuts couldn’t come at a worse time for those affected. Jesse acknowledged how difficult it can be to quit and explained that Amazon works with those affected and provides packages that include severance pay, benefits beyond health insurance and outside job placement support.

Amazon will contact affected employees starting January 18th. Today’s announcement was only made so now because someone at Amazon leaked the news to the public and Jesse decided it was best to deal with the leak head on. While American workers will speak directly, in Europe, Jesse said Amazon will deal with representative bodies of workers, rather than individuals directly.

“To those affected by this reduction, I want you to know how grateful I am for your contributions to Amazon, and for the work you’ve done for customers,” Andy Jessee said at the end of his statement. “You have made a significant difference in the lives of many customers. For those who will continue the journey with us, I look forward to working with you to continue to make life better and easier for customers every day and to innovate relentlessly to do so.”

In November it was reported that the company was looking to cut around 10,000 jobs, however, as we can see from Jesse’s statement, the situation is much worse now and almost double the number of jobs will be lost. Although it will be a difficult time for those who are let go, about 79% of US workers who were laid off were able to find a new job, although not always in the same sector.