Microsoft says it is laying off nearly 3% of its entire workforce.
The tech giant didn’t disclose the total amount of lost jobs, but it will amount to about 6,000 people. Microsoft employed 228,000 full-time workers as of last June, the last time it reported its annual headcount. About 55% of those workers were in the US.
Microsoft, based in Redmond, Washington, said the layoffs will be across all levels and geographies but will focus on reducing management levels. Notices went out on Tuesday.
“We continue to implement organizational changes necessary to best position the company for success in a dynamic marketplace,” a statement from the company reads.
Microsoft announced a smaller round of performance-based layoffs in January. But the 3% cuts will be Microsoft’s biggest reported layoffs since early 2023, when the company cut 10,000 workers, almost 5% of its workforce, joining other tech companies that were scaling back their pandemic-era expansions.
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The latest layoffs come just weeks after Microsoft reported strong sales and profits that beat Wall Street expectations for the January-March quarter, which investors took as a dose of relief during a turbulent time for the tech sector and US economy. Microsoft has exceeded Wall Street’s earnings estimates for the past four quarters in a row.
The company’s chief financial officer, Amy Hood, said on an April earnings call that the company was focused on “building high-performing teams and increasing our agility by reducing layers with fewer managers”. She also said the headcount in March was 2% higher than a year earlier, and down slightly compared with the end of last year.
