'I'm grieving': Amazon employee laid off in Bengaluru

At least 500 employees in India are being laid off by Amazon.

Amazon is in the process of laying off at least 500 employees across verticals in India as part of the second round of mass job cuts announced by the e-commerce giant earlier this year. The layoffs are affecting various departments, including Amazon Web Services (AWS), human resources and support functions, multiple sources have confirmed.

A woman at Amazon’s Bengaluru office, working as a senior product compliance associate, is among those who have lost their jobs last month. Yet to come to terms with the sudden job loss, the ex-employee is battling a range of emotions, including “grief, anger and uncertainty”. She said  she is "struggling to process" the reality of being unemployed.

“I'm grieving the loss of my job, the relationships I built with my colleagues and the sense of purpose I felt in my work,” she wrote in a poignant LinkedIn post.

“I'm also angry at the situation, and I'm feeling uncertain about what the future holds.”

The woman, who studied at a private university in Bengaluru, spent just a year at Amazon before she was laid off. It was her first job after college.

“I know that I'm not alone in this experience. Many people are laid off every year, and it's a difficult time. I'm grateful for the support of my friends and family, and I'm confident that I'll get through this,” she wrote, as she sought new job opportunities from her professional network.

Amazon announced its second round of layoffs in March, in which 9,000 jobs are to be cut. In a memo to employees on March 20, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said it was a “difficult decision” taken for the long-term benefit of the company. These layoffs come over and above the 18,000 roles that were eliminated just a few months ago.

Tens of thousands of people across the world have lost their jobs in the past six months as global technology giants are on a layoff spree globally. Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Meta, Twitter and Goldman Sachs are among companies that have sacked employees recently or frozen hiring in the face of sluggish consumer spending, higher interest rates and surging inflation worldwide.