After news broke last week that another round of mass layoffs was impending at Amazon, employees were waiting for the hammer to drop. Late Tuesday night, it did—seemingly by accident.
An assistant to the vice president of AWS Solutions reportedly inadvertently sent a calendar invite to a handful of employees for a “Project Dawn” meeting—referencing the name of the company’s stated efforts to enhance efficiency—with an accompanying message about job cuts. The event was quickly cancelled.
The next morning, Amazon confirmed it was laying off 16,000 workers. The news comes a few months after the tech giant slashed 14,000 jobs, and the same week UPS announced 30,000 layoffs and Dow cut 4,500.
With layoffs predicted to continue at many organizations this year, Dr. Jasmine Escalera, career expert at Zety, notes that the manner in which the message is delivered is paramount to preserving morale among retained employees and maintaining a positive employer brand.
“The way layoffs are communicated often carries as much weight as the decision itself,” she says.
Anxiety about layoffs is already high: Outplacement and career development company INTOO recently reported that employee fears about job loss have jumped by 30% since 2019, with more than half of employees surveyed saying they would take a pay cut if it could guarantee them more stability.
And with mass layoffs capturing plenty of headlines in the last few months, the rumor mill is churning, which Escalera says fuels uncertainty, thereby dragging down engagement and driving up employee stress.
The Amazon layoffs highlight that truth. Several media outlets reported on the possible job cuts last week, which Business Insider said prompted widespread anxiety among employees. More than 26,000 of them joined an internal Slack channel, where they coped with the possible news by roasting everything from company culture to founder Jeff Bezos.
A recent Zety report found that about 1 in 15 employees say internal rumors came before their own layoff.
“For those directly affected, early rumors often heighten anxiety and can make the eventual announcement feel abrupt or destabilizing,” Escalera says. In addition, layoff rumors continue to impact employees who are retained, with nerves about their own job security likely to persist after the layoffs.
Those are outcomes that Microsoft recently sought to avoid, as a spokesperson categorically denied rumors of mass layoffs that spread online.
When rumors do flourish, Escalera says they color how both departing and existing employees judge both the company’s culture and its leaders.
“Even before formal decisions are shared,” Escalera says, “employees tend to read meaning into what is said, what isn’t and when.”
Layoff communication done right
Regardless of how much speculation exists about layoffs, HR and business leaders should emphasize both clarity and empathy when they craft their messaging, Escalera says.
“Employees want to understand why decisions were made, how the process unfolded and what support, if any, will follow,” she notes.
Zety’s research highlights that many organizations may miss that latter element in their messaging: an offer for ongoing support. Nearly two-thirds of those surveyed say they wish their former employer connected them with more help finding a new position, while nearly half said the experience could have been better if leadership had communicated differently.
Delivery is also important.
Zety found that about 28% of workers polled were notified of a layoff by phone, and slightly more by email. They assessed both as “impersonal,” particularly during such a vulnerable time.
Employees will remember that feeling, and it could directly shape public perceptions of the organization.
“In an environment where employees have more platforms to share experiences publicly,” Escalera says, “these moments can quickly influence employer reputation in real time.”
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