After firing employees in 2026, US-based tech giant Amazon has reached out to its former employees about open roles across the company, including in its cloud-computing and AI businesses, Business Insider has reported. The media outlet accessed recruiter emails which suggested that Amazon wants former employees back, including some it laid off. In January, Amazon approximately cut 14,000 corporate positions, according to Reuters, making it the second biggest layoff since October 2025.
Amazon's AI agent team is led by AWS Vice President Swami Sivasubramanian. Last month, the team reportedly contacted former AI and machine learning employees about new jobs. A recruiter called the effort “Swami's Boomerang Reengagement Initiative.” In another instance, an AWS Finance recruiter contacted a former employee about returning to Amazon. The recruiter offered a faster path to getting a new job. They also asked if Amazon's return-to-office policy was the reason the employee had left.
One of the emails read: "A lot has changed since you were here, and there's some really compelling work happening across AI/ML right now." The email comes at a crucial time when Amazon's competitors are trapped in the fight for AI talent against the likes of Google, OpenAI, Meta, and Anthropic. Amazon is reaching out to former employees whose experience it already knows. The company is offering some of them a faster way to return. In one case, a recruiter also asked whether Amazon’s return-to-office policy had prompted the employee to leave.
Amazon layoffs in 2026
In 2026, Amazon has cut more than 30,000 jobs in multiple rounds of layoffs and this was among the largest workforce reductions in its history. Amazon spokesperson Haley Silva told Business Insider that boomerang hiring is a normal practice at the company. She said it has been used for a long time and is not a new program focused only on AI or cloud computing. Silva said former employees who were laid off can also be eligible to return. However, she said Amazon is hiring for open positions and is not specifically targeting workers who left because of the return-to-office (RTO) policy. She also said Amazon's in-office requirements have not changed.
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"We're always interested in connecting with talented people — both new candidates and former Amazonians — for open roles," Silva said. "Rehiring former employees is a normal, longstanding part of how we recruit, and our rehire and interview practices are consistent across the company."
This is not the first time Amazon is re-hiring fired employees. In 2023, AWS's Human Resources VP Ian Wilson told employees that many workers affected by the company's job cuts were eligible for rehire. He said Amazon should consider how to "proactively extend an invitation" to former employees who wanted to return.
An email from an AWS Finance recruiter shows that Amazon's outreach is not limited to AI roles. The recruiter contacted a former employee who had left the company in good standing and offered a short interview process followed by a possible job offer. The recruiter also asked if Amazon's return-to-office (RTO) policy was a major reason the employee had left. The recruiter said the answer would help Amazon understand the person's remote-work and location preferences for future job opportunities. The recruiter also wrote, “Please know that I'm sensitive to these concerns.”
