Departure plans and massive layoffs: behind the “annus horribilis” for employment in American tech, the shadow of AI
DECRYPTION – All major technology groups have drastically cut their workforce this year. As of October 30, nearly 233,000 workers had been laid off in the sector (not counting expected departures from Microsoft).
The announcement had the effect of a bomb at the beginning of the week. 60,000 Microsoft employees are being offered a voluntary departure plan by the end of the year. Reduced to its global workforce, the data is dizzying: 1 in 4 employees.
Two days later, the group presented record financial results, for the fourteenth quarter in a row. “We are changing the world,” says Stéphane Roder, partner at Wavestone, noting that action did not move on Wall Street when the plan was announced, “as if it were normal.” Microsoft does not directly say that this XXL plan is linked to the adoption of AI.
“Future workforce needs will continue to depend on business needs and priorities,” the company says. In the spring, the giant had already offered 8,000 of its American employees a departure plan, based on their age and seniority. Nearly a third of them had taken it.
Microsoft assured at the time that positions were not replaced by AI.
Machine-translated from French
Not cross-checked yet
Only Le Figaro reports this story so far. We show it as a single source until another newsroom confirms it.
- Le Figaro1 Nov, 18:00
| Publisher Le Figaro (established tier) | +76 |
| Detailed summary | +2 |
| Total | 78 |
Method: reports are grouped by the words of their headline and summary; each newsroom counts once; figures are read from the reports as published. Nothing here is written by an AI.