The tech layoffs that hit the sector in 2023 have continued into 2024, with a range of companies from big tech companies to small businesses making cuts.
Amazon.com AMZN
It recently announced it would cut “several hundred” roles across its Prime Video and MGM Studios businesses, while Twitch, the Amazon-owned streaming platform, said it would cut more than 500 jobs. Other companies laying off workers include Xerox Holdings Corp. XRX,
Unity Software Inc,
DocuSign Inc. DOCU,
Okta Okta Company,
And eBay Inc,
While this week Snapchat's parent company Snap Inc. SNAP
It said it intends to cut about 10% of its employees.
Against this backdrop, a large number of support groups have been formed on LinkedIn to help laid-off workers connect and find new roles. The Technology Association is one such organization, which describes itself as “for everyone, by everyone” affected by the layoffs of technology workers at Alphabet Inc.’s GOOGL.
Google
Google, Amazon.com Inc., Microsoft Corp. (MSFT).,
Salesforce, a customer relationship management company
And others.
Related: Snap to cut 10% of staff as technical layoffs continue
The group has amassed more than 1,200 members since its inception in January 2023. With the tech industry under fire, the Tech League gives people a chance to “network” their competitors, according to a group representative. This allows people to meet new peers and cross boundaries that exist between competing companies, while also reminding them that they have friends and allies who understand them, the representative added.
“People will post opportunities within the group that they think others can benefit from, people in the group are eager to share opportunities with others even after finding new jobs and people are willing to continue helping others or opening up to others,” the person told MarketWatch. Helping others who are still looking for work.” “In terms of roles, HR, compliance and ethics roles, especially those surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) appear to have been severely impacted, as well as marketing, data center infrastructure and technology consulting and sales roles.”
The US West Coast, Australia and New Zealand appear to be most affected by layoffs, according to the representative. “In terms of industries most affected by layoffs, disability-focused, ethics-focused, and defense technology companies are the most affected,” they added.
Related: Tech layoffs continue as Amazon cuts 'several hundred' at Prime Video, MGM Studios and Twitch make just over 500 layoffs
So far this year, 135 technology companies have laid off 33,874 employees, according to Layoffs.fyi. The site says that the technology sector witnessed a large number of job cuts last year, as 1,186 companies around the world cut 262,682 jobs.
Also on LinkedIn, the Tech Layoff Resources, Job Opportunities and Candidates group was created in late 2022 while Twitter was making cuts, and has since amassed more than 1,300 members. “It's set up to help people who have been laid off from their jobs (combining leads, positions and useful materials in one place),” a representative of the group told MarketWatch. “Anytime I see something on my page that might be interesting to someone looking for a job/candidate, I post it there.” The actor added that as the group grew, more people started doing the same.
Other groups aim to help workers in specific fields, such as the Indiana Tech Layoffs group, which focuses on the Hoosier state. The group was founded by Jennifer Merrill, chair of the Digital Fluency Advisory Board at Franklin College and former vice president of Indianapolis-based tech accelerator TechPoint, and Linda Calvin, chief impact officer at Reboot Representation, a Melinda Gates-funded project that aims to shut down the world. The gender gap in technology for Black, Latina, and Native American women.
Related: Technology layoffs are in the spotlight again as 2024 kicks off with Xerox job cuts
The group has reached 160 members since its establishment last year.
“We had to have someone do something to accelerate jobs for people,” Merrill told MarketWatch. “We have some big tech companies [in Indiana]“And all the small and medium businesses that fuel that,” she said, emphasizing the presence of companies like Salesforce Inc. and Infosys Ltd. IN:500209
And the software company Genesys in the state.
Layoffs in the tech sector have also disproportionately affected women and people of color, according to Calvin, pointing to cuts to HR and DEI (diversity equity and inclusion) positions that have been made in recent years. “It's last in, first out,” she said. “Someone needs to respond and respond to this and help people connect, and we're lucky we know a lot of people.”
Related: Okta will cut 400 jobs as part of commitment to profitable growth, rising shares
Calvin also said that layoffs in technology have “somewhat impacted” roles such as marketing, sales and customer service, but other jobs, such as programming and cybersecurity, have been less affected. “You don't hear a lot about 'code breaking' and cybersecurity [cuts]”I've heard of a few people, but they found roles very quickly,” she told MarketWatch.
As laid-off workers try to find jobs, Calvin identified opportunities in industries that rely heavily on technology, pointing to Walmart Inc.'s WMT.
A presence in Indiana, as well as pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly & Co. LLY,
Which is headquartered in Indianapolis. “There is an opportunity where people need to look at every company as a technology-driven company,” she said.
Other major companies in Indiana include defense giant Raytheon; Rolls-Royce UK: RR,
Which has a manufacturing, assembly, testing and engineering facility in Indianapolis; Roche Diagnostics, with its North American headquarters in Indianapolis; and Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. ZBH,
Which is headquartered in Warsaw, Indiana.
look now: Report: Alphabet's X division is eliminating dozens of jobs
Last year, Heartland BioWorks in Bloomington, Indiana, was selected as one of 31 inaugural regional technology centers by the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration. The center will focus on innovation in the field of biotechnology.
Merrill also sees opportunities for laid-off tech workers to reskill in AI. “I think 2024 is the year for the rise of machine learning engineers,” she told MarketWatch. “There are about 150,000 machine learning engineers in the world right now alone.”
“I think these are tremendous opportunities to change direction,” she added.
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