As of August 2020, Google has announced a major restructuring of its workforce, cutting 12,000 jobs across the globe. This marks the latest round of swathes of layoffs among big tech companies this year.
Google’s 12,000 employees, equating for about 2% of their workforce, are primarily from their ‘smart devices and services’ business, which covers the manufacturing of products such as Nest smart home gadgets and Pixel smartphones. The majority of the layoffs have been taking place in countries outside the US, with Taiwan and India being the biggest casualties in terms of job losses.
The restructuring has been primarily attributed ‘to the dynamic nature of the technology industry’, citing the Covid-19 pandemic as a major factor in the decision-making process. Other big tech companies such as Microsoft, Facebook, Amazon and Twitter have made similar cuts, totalling an estimated 73,000 workers globally in 2020. This can also be seen as part of a broader picture of tech giants attempting to further consolidate their financial power.
As Google is a major employer in Taiwan and other Asian countries, these cuts are being seen as an especially worrying sign for the industry in that region. In Taiwan in particular, many industry workers have responded with protests at Google’s offices, demanding more job security, better severance pay and measures to prevent similar layoffs in the future.
Google has released statements in an attempt to mitigate the effects of their layoffs, proposing new hires in cloud computing and security, as well as diversifying away from smart devices. They have also pledged to provide a $150 million ‘Global Impact Award’, to fund startups and non-profits.
Overall, Google’s restructuring of their workforce is part of a wider trend among big tech companies. There are positive aspects to this, such as new jobs in new sectors and increased company efficiency. But it also has a major impact on communities relying on employment in the tech sector, leading to protests and demands for better job security. It remains to be seen how these tech layoffs will affect the industry in the long term.
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