Amazon Layoffs

Amazon Set to Lay Off Thousands of Corporate Workers

The layoffs come as Amazon is undertaking a broad review of costs, The Wall Street Journal reported last week. That review has focused on the devices unit, which the Journal reported has lost $5 billion annually in some recent years.

The layoffs could affect about 10,000 employees, though that number could change, the person said. The cuts are being made as team by team decisions, they said. The cuts would represent less than 1% of Amazon’s global workforce, which exceeded 1.5 million people at the end of September, including hundreds of thousands of workers at its warehouses.

Facebook Layoffs 

Facebook Parent Meta Announces Layoffs of 11,000 Staff

Meta Platforms Inc. said it would cut more than 11,000 workers, or 13% of staff, embarking on the company’s first broad restructuring as it copes with a slumping digital-ad market and plunging stock price.

Redfin Layoffs

Redfin Shuts Home-Flipping Business, Lays Off 13% of Staff in Slumping Housing Market

Real-estate company Redfin Corp. laid off 13% of its staff on Wednesday and closed its home-flipping unit, saying the operation was both too expensive and too risky to continue.

The Seattle-based company, which operates a real-estate brokerage and home-listings website, said the decisions were made because it is predicting that the real-estate market is going to be smaller next year and its home-flipping business is losing money. It previously laid off 8% of its workforce in June of this year.

Saleforce Layoffs

Saleforce Confirms it has Laid Off Hundreds of Employees

Salesforce laid off hundreds of people this week as the onslaught of tech cutbacks continued unabated. The company would not share an exact number, but said it was less than a thousand, and the people involved were informed yesterday, according to a person close to the company.

Stripe Layoffs 

Consider Stripe's CEO Patrick Collison's Email to Stripe Employees on November 3.

Today we’re announcing the hardest change we have had to make at Stripe to date. We’re reducing the size of our team by around 14% and saying goodbye to many talented Stripes in the process. If you are among those impacted, you will receive a notification email within the next 15 minutes. For those of you leaving: we’re very sorry to be taking this step and John and I are fully responsible for the decisions leading up to it.

FedEx Layoffs

Please note FedEx Freight Enacts Furloughs as it Faces Volume Decline

FedEx Freight confirmed Saturday it is enacting furloughs in some U.S. markets. The move is due “to current business conditions impacting volumes,” the LTL said in an emailed statement.

Other carriers like Werner, J.B. Hunt and Knight-Swift are also adjusting in the face of economic uncertainty and what is expected to be softer holiday demand.

“While peak season this year is underwhelming thus far, it will only hasten the capacity correction that is already underway,” Werner CEO, President and Chairman Derek Leathers said on a Nov. 3 earnings call.

Bell Ringer

When was the last time that FedEx furloughed workers in the middle of "peak season"?https://t.co/QGWUb27ODP

— Craig Fuller 🛩🚛🚂⚓️ (@FreightAlley) November 12, 2022

"When was the last time that FedEx furloughed workers in the middle of peak season?" asks Craig Fuller, founder/CEO of FreightWaves, American Shipper, and CEO of FLYING Magazine.

Trucking Weakens

The trucking market continues to weaken, with the first part of November having one of the biggest volume drops of any non-holiday period all cycle.

Why is this happening now: retailers have everything in stock for the holidays and no need to replenish inventories. pic.twitter.com/xlpIbwXgcW

— Craig Fuller 🛩🚛🚂⚓️ (@FreightAlley) November 5, 2022

"The trucking market continues to weaken, with the first part of November having one of the biggest volume drops of any non-holiday period all cycle." 

Far more than any tech layoffs, those Tweets should ring a bell about holiday shopping this season.

A Net 17 Percent Say They Will Spend Less This Holiday Season

Also, recall my November 7 post A Net 17 Percent Say They Will Spend Less This Holiday Season

Record Surge in Small Business Delinquencies 

On November 6 I noted Record 7 Percent Surge Small Business Rent Delinquency In October

Small businesses are struggling to pay rent due to higher rent inflation and fewer customers. The struggles vary by type of business.

Let's check in on reports of strong employment. 

Full Time Employment is Down 572,000 Since May

(Click on image to enlarge)

Finally please recall my take on the October jobs report: Lost in the Strong Jobs Meme, Full Time Employment is Down 572,000 Since May

Payrolls vs Employment Since March 2022

• Nonfarm Payrolls: +2,452,000
• Employment Level: +150,000
• Full Time Employment: -490,000

Not to worry, Biden says there is no recession and the economy is strong.

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