Amazon to cut 16,000 jobs in latest round of layoffs

By Brett Davis
The Center Square

Seattle-based Amazon announced on Wednesday morning that it’s laying off approximately 16,000 corporate employees globally as part of the multinational technology company’s restructuring efforts to streamline operations and reduce bureaucracy.

Amazon Senior Vice President of People Experience and Technology Beth Galetti confirmed the layoffs in a message shared with staff.

Her message was similar to what she said in October, when the company laid off 14,000 employees.

“As I shared in October, we’ve been working to strengthen our organization by reducing layers, increasing ownership and removing bureaucracy,” Galetti said in Wednesday’s announcement. “While many teams finalized their organizational changes in October, other teams did not complete that work until now.

“The reductions we are making today will impact approximately 16,000 roles across Amazon, and we’re again working hard to support everyone whose role is impacted,” Galetti said. “That starts with offering most US-based employees 90 days to look for a new role internally (timing will vary internationally based on local and country level requirements). Then, for teammates who are unable to find a new role at Amazon or who choose not to look for one, we’ll provide transition support including severance pay, outplacement services, health insurance benefits (as applicable), and more.”

During the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Amazon hired 175,000 new employees to keep up with increased delivery demand and support its operations network.

As of late 2025, Amazon employed approximately 65,000 corporate and tech employees in Washington state, with roughly 50,000 in Seattle and 14,300 in Bellevue.

The Center Square reached out to Amazon to inquire about the number of planned layoffs in Washington state cities.

“We aren’t breaking down by city, so [we] would point you back to Beth’s letter,” Amazon spokesperson Zoë Hoffmann emailed The Center Square.

Downtown Seattle Association President and CEO Jon Scholes noted the impact the layoffs will have on Seattle.

“A workforce change of this scale has ripple effects on the community – on individual employees and families and businesses that rely on the foot traffic,” he said in a statement to The Center Square. “The tech ecosystem has been a key driver to our city’s growth and bolstered the tax coffers, which helped fuel our city’s investments in housing, public safety and economic development the last 20 years or so.”

He remains cautiously optimistic.

“As companies grapple with emerging trends, we hope this pain is short-term,” Scholes said. “It would be unwise to bet against Seattle in the long run – the talent pool and fundamental assets are in our favor. The health of our city requires that downtown must be a competitive and attractive place to not only visit and live, but also to locate a business and to grow jobs. That’s the best way to ensure we have an economically resilient urban core.”