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Comment by raziel2p | Hacker News Reader

> The company has more than 1.5 million employees across its warehouses and offices worldwide.

> This includes around 350,000 corporate workers, which include those in executive, managerial and sales roles, according to figures that Amazon submitted to the US government last year.

So roughly 4% of jobs in Amazon's corporate division disappeared. Not to downplay that the world/economy is in a bad state, but I don't think this is very catastrophic.

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Not catastrophic, but probably a sign that jobs are shrinking instead of growing and so good market information if you were thinking about getting promoted or moving around?

Numbers do not support that. Jobs might be shrinking within Amazon, but globally the situation is the opposite.

Population is still growing, 25% the last 20 years (trend that is slowly reversing), and unemployment rates are the lowest at global scale (~4,9% for 2024, lowest historically, down from 6.0% in 2005).

That's around ~1.0 billion more jobs in 2024 compared to 2005.

[1] https://www.ilo.org/resource/news/ilo-expects-global-unemplo... [2] https://www.ilo.org/resource/news/ilo-annual-jobs-report-say... [3] https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/

Most jobs are not interchangeable, especially globally.

What good does it do me if India creates 30k new teller positions in supermarkets? Also, even in the US, they use things like gig work to make the numbers look better. Sure, some jobs were created while others were lost, but taking on Doordash in addition to Uber is no replacement for a lost management / marketing / sales position at Amazon.

It makes no sense to look at global averages for the employment market.

Easy for jobs to be created in Asia if they are being moved from North America. That doesn't say much by itself.

> Population is still growing

I think the relevant number here is working age population.

Rather, a correction for over hiring during periods of low-interest rates and excessive money printed which promoted & rewarded hiring just to be compretitive

> correction for over hiring during periods of low-interest rates

It's been three years since that though, and five years since covid. That's why we say "AI" now. Just make sure you don't say "executive incompetence".

I don't think it's incompetence, I think it's planned, merciless strategy. It costs nearly nothing to fire a ton of people, so why not hire a bunch with free money and dump them as soon as the free money disappears

Yeah pretty much. This is just late stage capitalism, and the working class seem to just be shrugging at it instead of what theyr forefathers did in reaction.

Plus, possibly some forward-looking positioning for a future where automation drives leaner companies with fewer employees per dollar of revenue.

Still. Less jobs on the market

I mean, may as well just point back to the 2000 tech bubble if we're going to keep nodding our heads at that line

We all know that this is just the beginning to get us desensitized.

The leaked plan is to fire up to 600,000 people. So roughly up to 40% of their workforce.

While bad, that’s something entirely different. The reported 30,000 seems to be because of economic conditions, whereas that 600,000 number is allegedly from robotic improvements in their warehouses. Not great for the American workforce either way, but they aren’t exactly the same.

Hmmm, if you’re referring to this article[1], please make sure you’re accurately representing it.

Amazon is not firing up to 600,000 people, they plan to automate jobs to avoid hiring 600,000 people projected out to 2033.

[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/21/technology/inside-amazons...

It also forecast a certain business growth that we see not happening. Also, no sane PM would document to fire 600,000 people, it’s always “avoid hiring, wink wink”.

Please combine the forecasted automation with the real compaction of the business. What happens when you continue to automate processes, but business doesn’t outpace the automation?

It's been 3 years of this. The frog has already been boiled, especially if you look at the comment activity here compared to 2023. HN is just caring less and less and tuning out the obvious economic headwinds we've been in. Real shame.

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