Amazon layoffs target 16,000 corporate roles as Amazon flattens management layers

Amazon is cutting about 16,000 corporate roles in its latest round of job reductions, a move that deepens the company’s push to remove management layers, speed up decision-making, and redirect resources toward priority bets such as artificial intelligence. The changes began rolling out this week and arrive alongside a separate reset in some physical retail experiments, adding to a sense that Amazon is narrowing focus after years of sprawling initiatives.

The cuts also land at a moment when large employers are selectively trimming white-collar headcount even as overall hiring remains uneven across the U.S. economy, making Amazon’s decisions a bellwether for how other tech and logistics giants may structure 2026.

Amazon layoffs: 16,000 roles targeted

Amazon’s top people executive, Beth Galetti, told employees the reductions will affect approximately 16,000 roles across the company. The stated goal: reduce layers, increase ownership, and remove bureaucracy—work that began with a previous restructuring in October and is now extending to teams that finished later.

Amazon said most U.S.-based employees whose roles are impacted will have 90 days to look for a new internal position (timing varies internationally based on local requirements). For employees who don’t land an internal role or choose not to pursue one, the company said it will provide transition support that can include severance pay, outplacement services, and health coverage where applicable. Galetti also wrote that broad reductions “every few months” are not the plan, while leaving room for teams to keep making adjustments.

How big this is, and what changed since October

The latest cuts complete a plan that would total roughly 30,000 corporate reductions since October, a level that is significant inside Amazon’s white-collar ranks even though the company’s overall workforce remains dominated by fulfillment and transportation roles. One key point of context: Amazon’s total headcount is roughly 1.58 million employees, meaning corporate roles represent only a slice of its workforce—but a slice with outsized influence over product roadmaps, operations strategy, and investment priorities.

Internally, the rollout has also been marked by confusion. A mistaken email referencing the program under the name “Project Dawn” circulated among some Amazon Web Services staff earlier in the week, unsettling employees before formal notifications reached all teams.

Which teams are feeling it across the company

The full scope by department has not been publicly detailed in a single list, but employee reports and internal chatter indicate impacts spanning multiple major groups. Mentions have clustered around AWS, the Alexa voice assistant organization, Prime Video, devices, advertising, and last-mile delivery. Additional impacts have been flagged in areas tied to Kindle and supply chain optimization within fulfillment-related organizations.

The breadth matters because it suggests the cuts are not confined to one underperforming bet. Instead, the pattern looks like a company-wide reshaping of how work is organized—especially where multiple layers of management and overlapping mandates have accumulated over time.

Retail experiments pull back at the same time

In a separate move announced earlier in the week, Amazon said it is closing its remaining Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh store formats, affecting a reported 72 grocery and convenience locations. It is also ending Amazon One, its palm-based ID and payment system for retail, in early June 2026.

Amazon has emphasized that the job cuts and the store-format changes are not directly linked, but the timing has fueled a broader narrative: Amazon is narrowing the surface area of consumer-facing experimentation while doubling down on scale businesses such as logistics and established retail footprints.

What to watch next: filings, timing, and earnings

A key near-term signal will be how the reductions show up in state-level notices and location-specific actions. In California, filings indicate roughly 3,850 layoffs tied largely to permanent facility closures across multiple counties, with many scheduled to take effect April 28, 2026.

Another immediate focus is Amazon’s next earnings report. The company is scheduled to share its Q4 and full-year 2025 financial results on Feb. 5, 2026 (ET). Investors will be listening for clarity on how much of the restructuring is about cost control, how much is about shifting investment toward AI, and whether additional organizational changes are likely later in the year.

Sources consulted: Amazon (About Amazon); Reuters; Axios; San Francisco Chronicle.