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Layoffs hit Silicon Valley as Amazon freezes hiring

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Agence France-Presse

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="An exterior view of the Amazon logistic center in Werne, Germany, 29 November 2019. EPA-EFE/FRIEDEMANN VOGEL" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2022/overseas/09/30/amazon-epa-9302022.jpg"/><figcaption>An exterior view of the Amazon logistic center in Werne, Germany, 29 November 2019. <em>EPA-EFE/FRIEDEMANN VOGEL</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>SAN FRANCISCO, United States - Payments firm Stripe and rideshare company Lyft, two darlings of Silicon Valley, announced major layoffs Thursday as the economy continues to darken for Big Tech.</p><p>The tough economic times are also hitting Amazon, which announced that it would freeze new corporate hires amid a highly uncertain economic environment.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/10/28/22/amazon-warns-of-meager-holiday-season-sales-growth">Amazon warns of meager holiday season sales growth</a></li></ul><p>The bloodletting came as the tech world awaits major layoffs at Twitter after the takeover by Elon Musk for $44 billion.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2313715" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div><p>Media reports said that Musk is preparing to eliminate thousands of jobs as early as Friday in an attempt to find ways to help pay for the massive buyout.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/11/01/22/twitter-board-dissolved-leaving-musk-as-sole-director">Twitter board dissolved, leaving Elon Musk as sole director</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/10/21/22/massive-layoffs-likely-at-twitter-report">Massive layoffs likely at Twitter: report</a></li></ul><p>Stripe, a payments company based in San Francisco and Dublin, said it was going to slash 14 percent of its staff telling its employees it had &quot;overhired for the world we&#x27;re in.&quot;</p><p>The company said this would return staff to the 7,000 people it had in February.</p><p>&quot;We are facing stubborn inflation, energy shocks, higher interest rates, reduced investment budgets and sparser startup funding,&quot; Stripe CEO Patrick Collison wrote in a note to staff. </p><p>Ride-hailing app Lyft, a rival to Uber, said it was letting go 13 percent or 683 non-driver employees. It cited a likely US recession and the rise in insurance costs for drivers.</p><p>The wave of layoffs comes just after a downbeat earnings season for most tech giants, with Facebook-owner Meta seeing its share price plummet by 73 percent this year to its lowest level since 2015.</p><p>Apple reported solid profits on rising revenues, but its iPhone sales missed estimates while it saw slowing growth in services revenues.</p><p>&quot;Amazon&#x27;s hiring freeze sends a clear and unfortunate signal that the mood music of the retail and consumer economy is shifting,&quot; said GlobalData managing director Neil Saunders.</p><p>&quot;The heady days of growth have now ended and have given away to an environment in which more caution is necessary to protect the bottom line,&quot; he added.</p><div><strong>arp/bfm</strong></div><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div>

Payments firm Stripe and rideshare company Lyft, two darlings of Silicon Valley, announced major layoffs Thursday as the economy continues to darken for Big Tech.