Google's parent Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) is cutting about 12,000 jobs as it faces "a different economic reality", it said in a staff memo cited by Reuters.
The job cuts affect 6% of its workforce, and follow thousands of layoffs at tech giants including Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O), Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O), and Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) who are downsizing after a pandemic-led hiring spree left them flabby in a weak economy, the source added.
Shares in Mountain View, California-based Alphabet, which boosted its workforce by nearly a third through 2020 and 2021, rose 4% on Friday. It further noted that they had fallen 30% in the past 12 months.
According to Reuters, Sundar Pichai, Alphabet's boss has taken "full responsibility" for the decisions that led to the layoffs.
With Alphabet's staff cuts, layoffs at four of the biggest U.S. tech companies total 51,000 jobs in the past few months. They have fanned fears of a recession even as the U.S. job market remains tight, it said.
The Alphabet Workers Union said in a statement that the company's leadership taking "full responsibility" was "little comfort."
"It's appalling that our jobs are first on the chopping block so shareholders can see a few more points in a chart next quarter," the union said.
AMK/PR