(Puget Sound Business Journal) - Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) is again laying off employees, offering another sign that the cooling economy is hitting the tech industry.
The Redmond-based company confirmed an Axios report that it's letting go of "under 1,000" employees across multiple teams and organizations.
Microsoft declined to provide details about the cuts, or how the Seattle area would be affected.
The company has over 61,000 employees in the Puget Sound region and more than 220,000 companywide. Like other tech giants, Microsoft ramped up hiring significantly during the Covid-19 pandemic. It has over 60% more employees than in 2019, when it had about 137,000 companywide, according to Business Journal research.
Employees posting on social media and on Blind, a tech industry forum, say they have been laid off from groups including the Xbox gaming division, Edge browser teams and the Microsoft Strategic Missions and Technology organization.
In an emailed statement, Microsoft described the layoffs as an evaluation of "business priorities" and said it would "continue to invest in our business and hire in key growth areas in the year ahead.”
The company expressed similar sentiments over the summer, when it cut job openings and laid employees.
Microsoft isn't the only company trimming its payroll. Amazon reportedly froze hiring for corporate and tech roles in its retail division, and Meta and Google have been enacting hiring freezes and quietly axing certain teams.
Amazon and Microsoft are also reevaluating their real estate portfolios. Amazon has begun cutting warehouse space and has delayed or even scrapped plans for future sites. Microsoft will shed Bellevue office leases as it completes its Redmond campus renovations.
By Alex Halverson
