By R. Rakendu
Amazon’s mass layoffs have shaken the tech world. The company decided to cut jobs of 10% of its global employees, which means that 3,50,000 people across the world have lost their jobs. Among them, 30,000- 35,000 Amazon employees in India were also out of jobs.
When demand for online content peaked post the COVID era, Amazon over-hired to meet the surging demand of the time. But once everything is settled, Amazon realised that they do not need to pay so many employees as their tasks can be taken over by Artificial Intelligence. Due to the advancement of AI, the work of a tech expert can now be accomplished by a computer with the assistance of AI. Some workers boarded after work and went to bed during the day to figure that they did not have to go back to work. This was certainly a clear sign that the job security was shaky.
Amazon sent emails out to former employees to have a one-on-one meeting. Amazon simply wrote an email to them while they were searching for jobs while requesting to meet with Amazon on a one-on-one basis. Unfortunately, the company let the currently unemployed former employees know that they would no longer have to engage with Amazon.
Losing his job after 11 years, one of the former employees of the company posted emotional content regarding the same matter. Talking about his hard work, the 34-year-old employee posted about how he has never taken any ‘time off’ during his tenure, even to spend time with his children.
His hard work was not just limited to the day. There were times when, even after work hours, he was unable to eat and had to leave his children all by themselves till he arrived back home late at night.
Seeing the letter that said that he was no longer employed, he broke down. He said he was “bawling his eyes out.” But he moved on to write about the positives in his life that only happened after he was laid off. He said he was able to help his wife make breakfast, then drop his kids off at school, activities he had not completed in the 17 years of being married! Next, he shared with his wife a cup of coffee. He described that at that moment they agreed they would tackle their financial crisis together, and he cried when he realized that is what they would do. The story finishes with the man coming to grips that now he could actually spend time with his family, which he obtained after being terminated