Amazon has confirmed it will cut 16,000 jobs globally after an internal email revealing the layoffs was mistakenly sent to employees before an official announcement.
The message, briefly circulated late Tuesday to staff in the US, Canada and Costa Rica before being withdrawn, outlined redundancies intended to “strengthen the company” by reducing layers and bureaucracy. Amazon formally confirmed the job cuts early Wednesday.
Beth Galetti, senior vice president of people experience and technology at Amazon, said the move was not part of regular rolling layoffs, noting that while many teams completed restructuring in October, others finalised changes only recently.
The email—titled “Send Project Dawn email,” Amazon’s internal code name for the layoffs—was drafted by Colleen Aubrey, a senior vice president at Amazon Web Services, and was mistakenly shared via a calendar invitation. It described the cuts as part of a long-term effort to streamline decision-making and improve speed for customers.
Employees familiar with the matter said the reductions had been widely expected, with internal estimates pointing to up to 30,000 roles being eliminated through multiple rounds extending into the coming months. Affected workers were encouraged to apply for limited internal openings, while others will receive severance based on tenure.
The cuts come amid a prolonged slowdown in the tech sector. Since 2022, companies including Meta, Google and Microsoft have shed tens of thousands of jobs. Industry tracker Layoffs.fyi estimates around 700,000 tech roles have been cut over the past four years, with further reductions this year at Meta and Pinterest.
Under CEO Andy Jassy, who succeeded founder Jeff Bezos, Amazon has enforced stricter cost controls and a full-time in-office work policy. Jassy has described the current phase as “a time to rethink everything.”
Earlier this week, Amazon also announced plans to close its remaining Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go grocery stores while expanding Whole Foods Market, highlighting a broader strategic reset across the business.
