Microsoft to lay off 10,000 workers, citing concern about a possible recession

Microsoft said Wednesday it would cut 10,000 jobs worldwide amid a slowing global economy.

In a blog post, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said the company was seeking to align its cost structure with projected revenues and where customer demand remained the strongest.

“As we saw customers accelerate their digital spend during the pandemic, we’re now seeing them optimize their digital spend to do more with less,” he wrote. “We’re also seeing organizations in every industry and geography exercise caution as some parts of the world are in a recession and other parts are anticipating one.”

The cuts affect less than 5% of the software giant’s total employee base, he said.

A person walks past the Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Wash., on Nov. 14, 2019.Wang Ying / Xinhua via Getty Images file

The announcement is the latest in a wave of white-collar job losses that have hit as inflation, higher interest rates and lower growth have impacted spending across the world. Earlier Wednesday, the Department of Commerce said U.S. retail sales fell by 1.1% in December, more than analysts were expecting.

Microsoft joins companies including Google’s parent, Alphabet, Amazon, Facebook and Salesforce among the tech giants that have announced job cuts in recent months.

Microsoft has called for 2% revenue growth in the fiscal second quarter, which would be the slowest rate since 2016, CNBC reported.