Jan 17 (Portal) – Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) plans to cut thousands of jobs, with some roles expected to be eliminated in human resources and engineering departments, media reports Tuesday said.
The expected layoffs would be the latest in the US technology sector, where companies including Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) have announced cuts in response to slowing demand and the deteriorating global economic outlook.
Microsoft’s move could indicate that the tech sector could continue to shed jobs.
“From an overall perspective, another upcoming round of layoffs at Microsoft suggests the environment is not improving and is likely to continue to deteriorate,” said Morningstar analyst Dan Romanoff.
UK broadcaster Sky News, citing sources, reported that Microsoft plans to cut about 5% of its workforce, or about 11,000 jobs.
The company plans to cut jobs at a number of engineering departments on Wednesday, Bloomberg News reported, according to a person familiar with the matter, while Insider reported Microsoft could cut recruitment by up to a third.
The cuts will be significantly larger than other rounds over the past year, the Bloomberg report said.
Microsoft declined to comment on the reports.
According to records, the company had 221,000 full-time employees as of June 30, including 122,000 in the United States and 99,000 internationally.
Microsoft is under pressure to maintain growth rates at its cloud unit Azure after several quarters of the PC market downturn hurt Windows and device sales.
It had said in July last year that a small number of roles had been cut. In October, news site Axios reported that Microsoft had laid off fewer than 1,000 employees in several business units.
Shares of Microsoft, which is scheduled to report quarterly earnings on Jan. 24, were marginally higher in late afternoon trading.
Reporting by Yuvraj Malik in Bengaluru; Edited by Maju Samuel and Sriraj Kalluvila
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