There’s a fresh rumor that Microsoft may disclose hundreds of layoffs this week. There are rumors that the internet giant wants to lay off 5 percent of its employees because of the weakening economy throughout the world.
According to Sky News, this figure suggests that as many as 11,000 workers might be let off in the next few weeks, and one Wall Street analyst has even claimed that the figure could be greater. According to Sky News, the company will officially declare the redundancies on January 24 during an earnings report, although The Verge reports that the news might come as soon as tomorrow.
This round of layoffs follows Microsoft’s announcement that the company would no longer provide employees with set vacation days in lieu of an unlimited number of holidays. Even while the new plan makes it seem like the corporation cares about its employees, many people were worried that it was just a way to avoid paying out for vacation days that weren’t utilized. This round of layoffs seems like another effort to slash costs, and it’s hard to view it any other way.
While Microsoft is still seeking to close its $70 billion takeover of Activision Blizzard, the announcement of these cutbacks is unlikely to go down positively with the wider populace. The FTC’s infringement complaint has already stalled the purchase, and now the EU wants to get embroiled as well by filing a “notice of concerns” that Microsoft must respond to by April 11.
Neither of these problems is expected to cause Microsoft to back out of the deal, but it is likely to be more of a struggle than the software giant anticipated at this time last year. The agreement was slated to close in June 2023; however, at this time, it is unclear whether or when it will close.
