$4.7 billion in severance pay! Amazon, Meta and other companies spend a fortune on layoffs!

It is learned that according to foreign media reports, in the fourth quarter of 2022, Meta, Amazon, Microsoft and Alphabet paid a total of US$4.7 billion in severance pay.

Meta: $975 million

Meta's severance charges totaled $975 million in the fourth quarter, but the company said some of the charges would be offset by "reductions in salary, bonus and other benefit expenses."

Meta laid off more than 11,000 employees, or about 13% of its workforce, in November, with CEO Mark Zuckerberg saying at the time that increased investment "didn't go the way he expected."

Meta's severance costs are likely to continue to rise in the coming months as the company is likely to increase its layoffs, the report said.

"As we make further progress toward increasing efficiencies, we may incur additional restructuring charges," Mark Zuckerberg said on the fourth-quarter earnings call. He also said the layoffs in November were the beginning of improving efficiency.

Microsoft: $800 million

Microsoft said in its second-quarter earnings report that it would take an $800 million charge for layoffs. Last August, the company terminated the contracts of hundreds of recruiters and other people who work in talent acquisition. In October, the company announced it was laying off about 1,000 employees.

In January, Microsoft announced it was laying off 10,000 employees and warned employees that the company was "in the midst of a period of significant change."

Amazon: $640 million

Amazon's severance expenses reached $640 million in the fourth quarter of 2022. The company's CEO Andy Jassy said on January 4 that 18,000 jobs would be cut from Amazon stores and the people experience and technology solutions divisions.

"Given the economic uncertainty, coupled with our rapid expansion over the past few years, hiring this year has almost been more difficult," Jassy stressed.

Google: $1.9 billion to $2.3 billion

Google parent Alphabet expects to spend between $1.9 billion and $2.3 billion on severance payments.

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai announced on January 20 that the company will cut 12,000 employees, or 6% of its global workforce.

Sundar Pichai told employees in an email that the company had experienced "dramatic growth" over the past two years and faced a "different economic reality" when hiring compared to what it faces today.

Editor ✎ Nicole/

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