In the first two months of 2023, 417 companies have fired more than 1.2 lakh workers globally, making 2023 the worst year for tech workers.
According to data from the layoffs tracking website Layoffs.fyi, 1,046 tech companies, from big, legacy companies to startups, have terminated more than 1,61 lakh employees in 2022.
About 1 lakh tech workers worldwide lost their employment in January 2023 alone, mostly at firms like Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Salesforce, and others.
Until February of this year, approximately 3 lakh tech workers had their employment reportedly eliminated.
Most of these companies have already promised to offer severance pay to the sacked employees. IT professionals, who are on H-1B visas in the United States, have been severely hit by these layoffs as they are either required to find a new job in about the next 60 days or leave the country if they fail to meet the first requirement.
Several factors have been cited behind the phenomenon, including over-hiring, hazy global socioeconomic conditions, and the COVID-19 outbreak.
Once the performance awards are distributed, Meta (previously Facebook) is reportedly planning another significant round of layoffs, similar to the one announced in November 2022, as early as March 2023.
Meta allegedly gave “subpar ratings” to thousands of employees “in the most recent round of performance evaluations”, thus paving the way for additional layoffs at the business.
Ericsson, a Swedish telecom equipment manufacturer, is laying off around 8,500 workers, or 8% of its workforce, to reduce expenses in the current socioeconomic environment.
One of the most extensive layoffs is planned by the multinational consulting company McKinsey & Co.
Due to a “severe slowdown in its consulting business,” another large consulting firm, KPMG, is laying off 2% of its personnel, affecting around 700 people in the US.
DigitalOcean, a provider of cloud infrastructure, is firing roughly 200 workers, or around 11% of its workforce.