Amazon plans to chop greater than 18,000 jobs, the largest quantity within the firm's history, because it battles to save costs.
The on-line giant, which employs 1.5 million people globally, didn't say which countries the job cuts would hit, however said they would come with Europe.
Most of the job losses will come from its consumer retail enterprise and its human resources division.
Boss Andy Jassy cited the "uncertain economy" for the cuts, saying it had "hired quickly over a quantity of years."
"We do not take these decisions lightly or underestimate how a lot they might have an effect on the lives of these that are impacted," he said in a memo to staff.
He said the announcement had been introduced ahead due to one of many firm's employees leaking the cuts externally.
"Companies that final a very very lengthy time undergo different phases. They're not in heavy people expansion mode every year," he added.
Reacting to the announcement, one Amazon Fresh retailer worker told the BBC: "We're not allowed to talk about it, even to every other.
"I'd like to maintain my job, obviously," the worker said. But they were conscious that there are a variety of vacancies on the second within the UK and if this job was axed, they would merely apply for another.
'Amazon on a diet'
Amazon has seen gross sales slow after enterprise boomed throughout the pandemic when customers at home spent a lot online.
A potent mixture of a downturn in promoting revenues due to companies seeking to save cash, alongside consumers spending much less because the price of living disaster bites, is hitting tech firms hard.
Retail analyst Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail, tweeted that the Amazon job cuts were "a big number" however the corporate - throughout its entire operation - had taken on about 743,000 extra people since 2019, "some of which was based on irrational exuberance throughout the pandemic", he said.
"We're now in a different period and Amazon is on a diet," said Mr Saunders, including extra cuts are likely within the months and years ahead.
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Other big tech firms together with Meta - which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp - and cloud-based enterprise software program agency Salesforce have additionally each recently introduced big cuts.
Amazon has already introduced that it's cutting again on projects just like the Echo (better known as Alexa) and supply robots - which were nice-to-haves however not actually making money.
Anecdotally, there's a tendency in Silicon Valley for firms to rent and retain talented workers on attractive salaries, even when they're not instantly needed, primarily so as to cease them working for rivals. This tradition is a luxurious which big tech can no longer afford to maintain.
Amazon employees affected by the cuts will be told by 18 January.
'More ache ahead'
The transfer comes after the technology giant said final year that it would reduce its headcount with out saying what quantity of jobs would be cut.
The agency had already stopped hiring new staff and stopped a few of its warehouse expansions, warning it had over-hired throughout the pandemic.
Amazon began shedding staff as early as November, in accordance to LinkedIn posts by workers who said they had been impacted by job cuts.
Posts seen by the BBC included these from employees in Amazon's Alexa digital assistant business, Luna cloud gaming platform division and Lab126 - the operation behind the Kindle e-reader.
It has additionally taken steps to close some parts of its business, cancelling projects such as a private supply robot.
"Prior to the pandemic, tech companies would often take away solely the underside 1% to 3% of their workforce," Ray Wang from the Silicon Valley-based consultancy Constellation Research told the BBC.
Dan Ives from funding agency Wedbush Securities said he believes Amazon will face "more ache ahead" as customers tighten their belts.
Tens of thousands of jobs are being shed throughout the worldwide technology industry, amid slowing gross sales and rising concerns about an financial downturn.
In November, Meta introduced that it would cut 13% of its workforce.
The first mass lay-offs within the social media firm's historical past will result in 11,000 employees, from a worldwide headcount of 87,000, losing their jobs.
Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said the cuts were "the most difficult changes we have made in Meta's history".
The information adopted main layoffs at Twitter, which cut about half its staff after multi-billionaire Elon Musk took management of the agency in October.
