Amazon India lays off 130 employees; 400 affected in three rounds this yr

Bengaluru: Amazon India carried out a fresh round of layoffs, its third this year, affecting around 130 employees in its retail and stores business and customer service, sources told TOI. Amazon’s Stores business spans its core retail operations, online marketplace, and technology and tools that support sellers. The latest cuts are understood to have also affected teams in its selling partner services (SPS) division. Employees in the L2-L4 bands, comprising junior- to mid-level roles, are among those affected.The latest round brings the total number of employees laid off by the company in India since the beginning of the year to around 400, sources said. A majority of the 1,000 employees affected in the latest global round were based in the US and the UK. A year ago, Amazon’s global restructuring also extended to its India operations, impacting an estimated 1,000-1,500 employees.Some employees reportedly received connect emails involving L7/L8 (senior) employees, while several of those affected are managers and L4 employees. The connect email asks employees to “prioritize the meeting and join in person” and says, “We will discuss the agenda and the purpose of the meeting during our connect.”The layoffs are being driven by factors including job-family mix, location and co-location, and management structure, rather than being applied uniformly across the organisation.When TOI reached out to Amazon, its spokesperson said, “We’ve adjusted parts of our Stores business because we believe this structure will better enable us to deliver on our priorities. As part of these changes, we’ve made the difficult decision to eliminate a small number of roles, and we’re committed to supporting affected employees through their transition.”The severance package for affected employees is understood to include one month’s salary for every year of service, along with three months’ salary, leave encashment, outplacement services and continuation of insurance coverage until the next renewal cycle.Sources told TOI that two key criteria were considered. One was hub location and co-location, with employees expected to be based in designated company hubs and more than 85% of a team expected to be co-located with its manager. The span of control was another factor, with managers expected to have at least seven direct reports and managers of managers at least six. The aim is also to avoid excessive management layers or “nesting”, where employees at the same level report to one another.They also told TOI that the company is evaluating higher unregretted attrition (URA) targets. At Amazon, URA refers to employees the company considers it is willing to lose, whether through voluntary exits or performance-management processes.Amazon India to discontinue salary advance programme from Dec 1Separately, Amazon India has told employees it will discontinue its salary advance (SA) programme from Dec 1, replacing it with Anytime Pay (ATP) for blue-badge, or permanent, employees. Under ATP, employees can access wages they have already earned, with 24/7 access, instant bank transfers and unlimited withdrawals between the 1st and 23rd of each month. Amazon said the move is aimed at simplifying its pay practices and aligning them with global standards.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.