Alphabet, Google’s parent company, will follow in the footsteps of other Big Tech firms and implement massive layoffs. The layoff storm that has affected dozens of thousands of tech jobs worldwide has now hit nearly the entire FAANG universe. FAANG stands for Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, & Google.
On Tuesday, rumors spread that the computer behemoth headquartered in Mountain View, California, was intending to lay off somewhere in the neighborhood of 10,000 of its workers. This comes after record-breaking layoffs at tech giants like Meta (Facebook), Amazon, and Twitter. Apple has reportedly stopped hiring, while earlier this year Netflix laid off roughly 450 workers in two waves.
Alphabet’s layoffs are a part of the company’s performance improvement strategy, which was revealed at the beginning of the year. An article in The Info, a San Francisco-based business journal, claims that the company has ordered its managers to label 6% of its staff, or about 10,000 people, as low achievers.
There was no official word from Google (now Alphabet) on the report, and it was impossible to confirm how many people might be affected in India. The number of Google employees in India ranges from about 5,000 to 6,000. This investment was part of the company’s $10 billion plan to hasten the adoption of digital technology in the country, which it declared it will make in 2020.
Google’s layoff announcement follows a letter from hedge fund investor TCI to Alphabet, which was sent just days before. TCI’s $6 billion worth of Alphabet shares are a major asset.
“We are writing to express our view that the cost base of Alphabet is too high and that management needs to take aggressive action. The company has too many employees and the cost per employee is too high,” said MD of TCI Christopher Hohn.
He had also mentioned that Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai had said they could stand to be 20% more productive. “Nearly all technology companies are reducing costs. Meta reduced headcount by 13 per cent last week. Amazon is reducing headcount by 10,000. Microsoft, Salesforce, Stripe and Twitter are also reducing headcount,” said the letter dated November 15, 2020.
The stock price of Meta Corporation has increased by 18% since the business announced the layoffs at the end of October (till closing of November 21).
