Google’s parent company, Alphabet, has revealed plans to cut 12,000 jobs, making it the latest tech giant to make significant downsizing.
The reduction will affect 6% of Alphabet’s global workforce, including teams such as recruiting and engineering. The news comes days after Microsoft announced it would cut 10,000 jobs and weeks after Amazon said it would cut 18,000 jobs.
Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai took full responsibility for the job cuts in an internal email, thanking employees for their efforts and contributions.
He wrote, “While this transition won’t be easy, we’re going to support employees as they look for their next opportunity.” Pichai also encouraged employees to work from home on the day the news was announced.
Over 5,500 people work for Google in the UK, according to a recent Companies House filing. How many of these positions will be affected by the cuts is still unknown.
The job cuts are due to the ongoing economic recession caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Effect of the Pandemic
The tech industry, like many others, has been hit hard by the pandemic, and companies have had to make tough decisions to survive. This has led to a surge in unemployment as many companies have announced layoffs in recent months.
It is crucial to remember that even though the job cuts are substantial, they do not necessarily indicate that the business is having financial difficulties.
Google and Alphabet remain among the most profitable companies in the world, with the cuts likely a move to streamline and re-evaluate their operations in the face of an uncertain economic future.
In any case, these job cuts come as a blow to the affected employees and their families, and it will be a difficult time for them. The company has promised to support employees as they look for their next opportunity, and it remains to be seen how this process will unfold.
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Decision for the Best
Google’s parent company, Alphabet, has announced plans to cut 12,000 jobs, making it the latest tech giant to make significant staff reductions. The cuts will affect 6% of Alphabet’s worldwide workforce, including teams such as recruitment and engineering.
In an internal email, Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai took full responsibility for the job cuts, thanking staff for their hard work and contributions. He announced severance packages for US employees, who will receive at least 16 weeks of salary, their 2022 bonus, paid vacations and six months of health coverage.
Wall Street has welcomed the cuts, with Alphabet shares rising by 3.5% in electronic trading before the stock market opened.
Analysts have said that tech companies had previously overspent, not seeing a slowdown on the horizon. Daniel Ives of Wedbush Securities said the layoffs highlight irresponsible spending across a sector basking in “hypergrowth.”
Tech Industry’s Struggle
According to tech site Layoffs.fyi, nearly 194,000 industry employees have lost their jobs in the US since the beginning of 2022, not including those announced by Alphabet on Friday.
Other tech companies like Hewlett Packard and Salesforce have also announced major cuts this month, as rampant inflation and rising interest rates have slowed growth.
These job cuts come as US tech giants are also facing scrutiny in the European Union, which has started enforcing regulations to stop them from avoiding tax, stifling competition, profiting from news content without paying, and serving as platforms for disinformation and hate.
In any case, these job cuts come as a blow to the affected employees and their families, and it will be a difficult time for them.
The company has promised to support employees as they look for their next opportunity, and it remains to be seen how this process will unfold. Despite the job cuts, Pichai remains optimistic about the company’s ability to deliver on its mission and continue to innovate in the future.
Alphabet
Alphabet, the parent company of Google, is one of the largest and most successful technology companies in the world.
Founded in 1998, the company has grown to become a household name, thanks to its flagship search engine, Google. Today, Alphabet offers a wide range of products and services, including advertising, cloud computing, and hardware.
Alphabet’s roots can be traced back to Stanford University, where co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin were graduate students.
They developed a search engine called Backrub, which eventually became Google. The company was incorporated in 1998, and the rest, as they say, is history. Today, Google is the world’s most popular search engine, with billions of users worldwide.
In 2015, Alphabet was created as a holding company for Google and other subsidiaries, such as YouTube and the Google Play store. The new structure allowed Google to separate its core business from its more speculative ventures, such as self-driving cars and internet-beaming balloons.
In addition to its search engine, Alphabet offers a wide range of products and services. The company’s advertising business, which includes Google AdWords and AdSense, generates the majority of its revenue.
Google Cloud, the company’s cloud computing division, is also a significant contributor to its bottom line. Google’s hardware division, which includes the Pixel smartphone and Google Home smart speaker, is also growing rapidly.
Alphabet is also known for its investments in various companies and projects through its venture capital arm, CapitalG and GV. These include companies such as Uber, Airbnb, and Stripe.
Photo: IB Times
