Apple is reportedly eliminating some retail jobs as it looks to cut costs.
Until now, there were signs the tech giant was attempting to avoid the layoffs that many of its peers had untaken in recent months.
However, a report Monday (April 3) by Bloomberg News — citing unnamed sources — says Apple is reducing roles on its corporate retail teams. The jobs affected are in what Apple refers to as its development and preservation teams, responsible for the construction and upkeep of Apple stores and other facilities.
PYMNTS has contacted Apple for comment but has not yet received a reply.
The Bloomberg report notes that the number of jobs being cut is likely quite small, though the news outlet said it couldn’t determine a number.
However, it marks a reversal for Apple, which — according to reports from last month — was attempting to embark on a cost-reduction journey without cutting jobs. That meant delaying bonuses for some employees, scaling back travel and limiting hiring.
According to Bloomberg, Apple has told the affected workers they would have the ability to apply for similar roles with the company. Workers who don’t take a new job will get as much as four months’ severance.
The decision to eliminate these jobs comes as a number of tech companies are carrying out a much larger series of layoffs.
Amazon announced last month it would lay off 9,000 employees, on top of the 18,000 positions the company had previously cut.
The new layoffs primarily affect the company’s cloud computing, Twitch live-stream, and advertising departments, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said in a message to employees.
“For several years leading up to this one, most of our businesses added a significant amount of headcount,” Jassy said.
“This made sense given what was happening in our businesses and the economy as a whole. However, given the uncertain economy in which we reside, and the uncertainty that exists in the near future, we have chosen to be more streamlined in our costs and headcount.”
Also in March, Meta said it would lay off another 10,000 workers after cutting 11,000 jobs in November. That reduction — 13% of the company’s workforce — was the first time the company had carried out wide-ranging layoffs.
Last month also saw Disney shut down its metaverse division as part of its plan to eliminate 7,000 jobs.
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