Online retail titan Amazon is cutting more than 18,000 jobs worldwide in the largest layoffs programme in its history as part of plans to slash costs.
It is understood the job losses will include Europe, but the firm has not given details of how each country, including Ireland, will be affected.
The group, which employs around 1.5 million people globally - including around 5,000 in Ireland - had warned in November of job cuts without confirming a figure, but said it had found more roles would need to be axed as part of an in-depth review of its business.
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At that time, the then Tanaiste Leo Varadkar moved to ease concerns as he said he didn't believe Ireland would see Amazon job losses after talking to the IDA and industry insiders.
He said: “So, our initial advice from the IDA, which has been in touch with Amazon, is that they are saying that no job losses are currently anticipated for Ireland, but of course that could change.”
Amazon said roles that will be affected the most include those across its stores, such as Amazon Fresh and Amazon Go, as well as its human resources division.
Chief executive Andy Jassy said in a note to employees, which was made public: “These changes will help us pursue our long-term opportunities with a stronger cost structure.”
He blamed the move on an “uncertain economy”, adding “we’ve hired rapidly over the last several years”.
Mr Jassy also said the announcement had been brought forward after one of its employees leaked the details.
“We decided it was better to share this news earlier so you can hear the details directly from me,” Mr Jassy said.
The group expects to tell staff directly impacted by the cuts from January 18 and said it is offering a separation payment, transitional health insurance benefits, and job placement support.
He added: “Companies that last a long time go through different phases. They’re not in heavy people expansion mode every year.”
Another US tech company also announced a round of major job cuts on Thursday, with Salesforce axing around 8,000 workers worldwide, or 10% of its workforce.
It comes as Ireland has already been rocked by a series of job cuts in the tech sector that has seen hundreds told their roles are at risk in leading companies including Twitter and Stripe.
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