Nearly 194,000 U.S. employees lost their jobs in more than 150 major layoffs so far in 2023, according to Forbes’ layoff tracker—which counts layoffs affecting more than 100 positions—as a wave of job cuts spanning tech, banks, media and manufacturing continues into the new year and as employers fear a recession could be around the corner.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, laid off 10,000 employees this year.
Tech companies faced the brunt of major layoffs in 2023, with the biggest round of cuts coming at Google parent Alphabet, which let go of 12,000 employees in January, a decision CEO Sundar Pichai called one of several “tough choices” to “fully capture” the “huge” opportunities ahead.
More than 74,000 U.S. employees lost their jobs in major layoffs in the month of January alone, including at Salesforce, which axed 7,900 jobs, Goldman Sachs (3,200), and IBM (3,900).
Amazon, which unveiled plans late last year to cut more than 18,000 positions, laid off 8,000 jobs after letting go of another 10,000 in November, amid an “uncertain economy” and after CEO Andy Jassy said the company hired “rapidly” during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Microsoft announced a round of cuts in January affecting 10,000 employees, while in February, Microsoft-owned internet technology company GitHub laid off 300 positions, and in May, Microsoft cut another 158 employees from its headquarters in Redmond, Washington.
Manufacturing giant 3M also underwent multiple rounds of layoffs in 2023, cutting 2,500 positions in January before the Scotch tape and Post-it Notes maker slashed another 6,000 jobs in April.
Other companies to see major layoffs this year included Morgan Stanley, which slashed 3,000 positions in May, David’s Bridal, which cut more than 9,200, Dell, (6,650), and Disney (7,000).
10,000. That’s how many employees at Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta were laid off in two separate rounds of cuts this year, including 4,000 of its roughly 87,000 employees in April, plus another 6,000 in May. Meta slashed another 11,000 in November, a move CEO Mark Zuckerberg attributed to “macroeconomic downturn” and said amounted to the “most difficult changes” in “Meta’s history.” That round of cuts was the biggest in the year 2022.
Layoffs in 2023 have also targeted nearly 40 media companies, according to Forbes’ media layoff tracker, including a round of cuts this week affecting 20 on-screen personnel at ESPN, reportedly including longtime analyst Jeff Van Gundy. Other outlets to cut staff: Bloomberg (10 employees), Warner Bros. Discovery (100), The Athletic (20), The Los Angeles Times (74), Spotify (200) and Vice Media (100).
2023 Media Layoffs: ESPN Cuts 20 On-Camera Positions, Report Says (Forbes)
2023 Layoff Tracker: Pokemon GO Maker Niantic Cuts 230 Jobs (Forbes)