The 25+ Biggest Company Layoffs in History

Updated: Jul 13, 2023By Jordan GoldBusiness

This article originally appeared on Investing.com. It has been republished here with permission.

©/stock.adobe.com

The concept of job security is a pillar of the modern workforce. We expect to show up to work every day and receive our paycheck in return. However, sometimes circumstances out of our control force companies to make difficult decisions, and unfortunately, that often means layoffs.

While layoffs are never pleasant, some companies have had to make drastic cuts that have made history. These layoffs have not only impacted the individuals losing their jobs but also had ripple effects throughout the economy. In this post, we will take a look at some of the biggest company layoffs of all time from Meta to Twitter, and explore the reasons behind them.

1. Spotify

Year: 2023
Number of Layoffs: 600

Spotify was founded in 2006, and, though it hasn’t even been around for two full decades, it is already one of the world’s largest music streaming services. Spotify has had its ups and downs in the past. Most recently, in 2023, it lost 75% of its value when the company’s shares tanked.

Spotify ©norazaminayob / Shutterstock.com

Amid that dour economic news came an announcement from the streaming company that it was going to cut six percent of its workforce, adding yet another high-profile name to the tech layoff trends of 2023. All in all, 600 total workers will be affected.

2. Boeing

Year: 2020
Number of Layoffs: 6,770

Boeing has been one of the leading companies in the sale of aircraft for years, ever since it was first established in 1917. It’s the second-largest defense contractor in the world, but even its sheer size couldn’t save the company from being forced into unprecedented layoffs.

Boeing @dgorun / Twitter.com

On May 27, 2020, the company announced that 6,770 workers would be laid off, leaving 136,230 employees remaining. Boeing first announced plans to make redundancies in early April 2020, stating around 10% of their 143,000-strong workforce would have to join the unemployment line.

3. Coinbase

Year: 2022-2023
Number of Layoffs: 2,100

Coinbase, a cryptocurrency company at the forefront of digital currency, announced in 2022 that it was going to undergo massive layoffs of its employees. In 2023, just one year later, the fintech company announced yet another round of cuts.

Coinbase ©rafapress / Shutterstock.com

In January of 2023, 20% of the Coinbase workforce lost their jobs in one fell swoop. This means that, since June of 2022, Coinbase has cut a total of 2,100 employees from its roster. The reasons for the cuts are varying, but, mainly, the crypto market’s downturn has been the most consistent factor behind the layoffs.

4. Goldman Sachs

Year: 2008
Number of Layoffs: 3,260

Goldman Sachs is a name that many of us have been familiar with for decades, as this multinational investment bank and financial company was founded in New York City in 1869. This makes it one of America’s oldest companies. Though it has a storied history backing it, that has not made Goldman Sachs immune from layoffs.

Goldman Sachs @redmeescom / Pinterest

In 2008, Goldman Sachs cut 3,260 jobs because of the financial crisis. Years later, in January of 2023, the financial institution announced that it would once again shed 3,200 jobs (six percent of its workforce). Alas, on Wall Street, mass firings are just a way of life.

5. The Gap

Year: 2023
Number of Layoffs: 500

The Gap, a popular clothing retailer, has faced its fair share of challenges in recent years, including a significant company-wide layoff in 2020. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company announced plans to lay off approximately 10% of its global workforce, or about 1,500 employees. The layoffs affected employees across various departments, including corporate offices and retail stores.

The Gap ©Alex Millauer / Shutterstock.com

In addition, in 2023, Gap Inc. confirmed in September that it was cutting 500 corporate roles, representing a combination of layoffs and the elimination of certain open roles, in an effort to streamline operations and improve profitability. These layoffs serve as a reminder of the importance of financial responsibility and strategic planning, even for established and successful brands.

6. Bed, Bath & Beyond

Year: 2020
Number of Layoffs: 500

In 2020, Bed, Bath & Beyond made headlines with one of the largest company layoffs in history. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company announced plans to lay off approximately 2,800 employees across their retail stores and corporate offices.

Bed, Bath & Beyond @BedBathAndBeyond / Facebook.com

The layoffs accounted for about 5% of the company’s workforce and were part of a larger restructuring plan aimed at reducing costs and improving profitability. The announcement came as a shock to many, as Bed, Bath & Beyond had been a staple in the retail industry for years. This massive layoff is a sobering reminder of the impact that external forces can have on even the largest and most successful companies.

7. Philips

Year: 2023
Number of Layoffs: 6,000

Philips was founded in the Netherlands in 1891, and it has grown to become a multinational corporation that brings in around $18 billion in revenue every year. Philips is somewhat of a jack of all trades, but it is most famous for its healthcare products (diagnostic imaging, informatics, etc.).

Philips ©Mats Wiklund / Shutterstock.com

Philips’ sales dropped 3% in 2022, and the company responded by cutting a total of 6,000 jobs by January of 2023. The job cuts are, according to Philips, solely about increasing profitability (and the expense of 13% of its workforce).

8. Meta

Year: 2022-2023
Number of Layoffs: 22,000

If you’ve seen the headlines, you’ve probably wondered, “What is going on with Facebook?” Well, firstly, Facebook’s parent company goes by the name Meta now, and that is far from the only change in the tech corporation.

Meta ©Romain TALON/stock.adobe.com

In 2022, Mark Zuckerberg wrote a letter to his employees expressing his regret that Meta would have to lay off 12,000 employees (around 13% of its staff). Then, less than a year later, Meta announced a round of yet another 10,000 layoffs, bringing the total to 22,000.

9. Best Buy

Year: 2012
Number of Layoffs: 2,400

Back in 2012, Best Buy, one of the largest electronics retailers in the world, announced a significant company-wide layoff. The decision to cut around 2,400 jobs was made as part of a larger restructuring plan aimed at improving the company’s financial performance. The layoffs affected employees across various departments, including Geek Squad technical support and retail positions.

Best Buy @Jonathan Weiss / Shutterstock.com

However, the company has continued to thrive in the years since the layoffs. In 2023, Best Buy Canada is reportedly laying off 700 people, as the company seeks to streamline operations and improve profitability in the face of economic uncertainty. These latest layoffs serve as a reminder that even successful companies may need to make tough decisions in order to stay competitive.

10. IBM

Year: 1990s
Number of Layoffs: 60,000

IBM has the nickname Big Blue, as it is a huge multinational technology corporation with a presence in more than 175 countries. Big Blue brings in $60.53 billion in revenue a year, and it has been around for well over a century.

The early 1990s brought with it the rise of the Internet, and IBM struggled to find its place in the new, high-tech world. The company had to cut costs to survive, and it did so by eliminating 60,000 jobs in one fell swoop.

11. General Electric

Year: 2018
Number of Layoffs: 12,000

In 2018, General Electric announced its largest company layoff to date. The struggling industrial conglomerate laid off approximately 12,000 employees worldwide, with the majority of the cuts affecting its power division. The layoffs were part of a broader restructuring plan aimed at reducing costs and improving efficiency as GE struggled to adapt to a rapidly changing business environment.

General Electric ©Jonathan Weiss / Shutterstock.com

The company faced declining demand for its power-generation equipment, increased competition from foreign rivals, and a significant debt load. Despite the challenges, GE remains a global leader in a range of industries, including aviation, healthcare, and renewable energy, and continues to innovate and invest in new technologies.

12. Neiman Marcus

Year: 2020
Number of Layoffs: 850

In 2020, Neiman Marcus, the luxury department store chain, announced that it was reducing its workforce by 14%, or approximately 850 employees. The layoffs affected both corporate and store employees, with the majority of the cuts coming from the latter. The company had already been struggling with declining sales and mounting debt before the pandemic hit, but the pandemic dealt a severe blow to the retail industry as a whole.

Neiman Marcus ©Helen89 / Shutterstock.com

In addition to the layoffs, Neiman Marcus also underwent changes to its leadership team, with a new CEO appointed to lead the company through these challenging times. The company has since been working to adapt to the changing retail landscape, including expanding its e-commerce offerings and focusing on luxury experiences in its physical stores.

13. Microsoft

Year: 2014
Number of Layoffs: 18,000

In July of 2014, Microsoft made an announcement that shocked its employees. The tech company announced that it would be laying off up to 18,000 employees, with 12,500 of those layoffs coming from Microsoft’s Nokia Devices and Services mobile phone unit.

Microsoft @vanuatutech / Twitter.com

At the time, those were the biggest job cuts that Microsoft, a billion-dollar company, had ever enacted. This was the largest layoffs in the corporation’s history, representing an astonishing 14% of its workforce.

14. Hertz

Year: 2020
Number of Layoffs: 10,000

The Hertz Corporation has been trading since 1918, meaning the company is no stranger to tough times. Having said that, the company had a 38,000-strong workforce at the start of 2020 but then announced that it would be laying off around 10,000 employees as part of its bankruptcy restructuring plan. The layoffs accounted for about 25% of Hertz’s global workforce and were a result of the sharp decline in travel worldwide.

Hertz @roymorton20 / Twitter.com

The announcement was a blow to both the affected employees and the company, which had been a prominent player in the rental car industry for over a century. The massive layoffs serve as a stark reminder of the far-reaching impact of the pandemic on various industries and the workforce.