Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) plans to reduce thousands of jobs, with some positions expected to be terminated in the human resource and engineering departments.
The projected layoffs would be the latest in the United States’ technology industry, where companies such as Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) have announced layoffs in response to sluggish demand and a worsening global economic outlook.
Microsoft warned of a downturn in its cloud computing business in October last year, acknowledging that key corporate customers were reconsidering their investment in response to economic challenges.
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Many internet companies are suspending or stopping hiring in the face of a more generalized global economic slowdown, rising interest rates, and regulatory challenges.
Meta announced mass layoffs on November 9, 2022, affecting thousands of workers. At the end of the third quarter of operations, the company reported having roughly 87,000 employees. However, with the planned layoffs, a significant portion of the staff was lost.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg explained the adjustments to the company’s staff in communications, citing a lack of predictability in the macroeconomic climate.
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Twitter, which is owned by Elon Musk, also lost thousands of positions, while computer manufacturer HP laid off 6,000 workers.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services.
Headquartered at the Microsoft campus in Redmond, Washington, Microsoft’s best-known software products are the Windows line of operating systems, the Microsoft Office suite, and the Internet Explorer and Edge web browsers
The company also produces a wide range of other consumer and enterprise software for desktops, laptops, tabs, gadgets, and servers, including Internet search (with Bing), the digital services market (through MSN), mixed reality (HoloLens), cloud computing (Azure), and software development (Visual Studio).
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