Amazon Alexa Becomes Voiceless! Layoffs Hit Harder than Estimated

Amazon layoffs are hitting harder than estimated remote-working Turkish employees

One out of every two software developers who quit their job in Türkiye starts working for a company abroad, with the leading software and technology companies in the country considering a raise twice a year in order to retain their employees, research has revealed. According to the research, in which a total of 70 technology companies participated, 60 percent of the companies stated the main reason behind the software developer crisis in Turkish companies is job offers from foreign markets.

Foreign companies, who saw the spread of remote working as an opportunity, started to employ technology talents in Türkiye as they are able to offer software developers jobs with low salaries compared to their home countries but much higher than a company can offer in Türkiye, according to the research.

The rate of companies that work completely remotely last year was 6 percent, while this rate increased to 24 percent this year. Companies provide flexibility to their employees in deciding the days to work from the office, while many companies leave this decision to their employees. Almost half of the Turkish companies offer company shares to their employees in order to prevent the software crisis, while the employee's performance is mostly taken into account in the stock application.

The research also reveals that some 20 percent of companies also offer profit sharing to their employees, and such premiums have started to be used more often as a means of retaining employees in an inflationary environment. In the research, which also evaluated health insurance among the possible causes of the software developer crisis, the rate of companies providing health insurance increased to 57 percent, while the rate of companies providing private health insurance considerably increased in the last two years.

In the first half of 2022, 419,000 Russians left the country, according to the Rosstat statistics agency. Although more recent figures have not been released, the exodus has likely grown since President Vladimir Putin announced a military mobilization on September 21. While it is unclear how many of those departures were Russians leaving the country for the long term, the loss of working-age people, entrepreneurs, and trained specialists has been a significant drain for Russia.

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy stated that the company will start layoffs again in early 2023. More employees are expected to lose their positions in line with company leaders' annual planning process. Jassy noted that the company has not determined exactly how many people will be laid off, but "there will be reductions in our stores and [People, Experience and Technology] organizations." Amazon will report who will be affected by its downsizing activities early next year.

Amazon has approximately 1.5 million employees. The scope of these layoffs of the company includes the parts that made a loss or did not make the expected profit for now. Wanting to make these departments more effective and efficient, Amazon will first look for a position within Amazon for the personnel it will dismiss. If a position is not found, the employee will be offered severance pay. Amazon had already announced a few days ago that it would lay off 10,000 of its employees.