Layoffs hit the tech sector last year and had affected almost two lakh people by the end of 2022, but the new year didn't bring respite. Amazon and Meta who slashed 11,000 and 18,000 jobs last year, started another round of layoffs in 2023, as workers remain anxious.
As we enter the third month of the year with a recession looming, 1.5 lakh tech professionals have lost their jobs in 2023 alone.
New year, new layoffs
The accelerated layoffs have hit employees of 503 firms, and one lakh people were fired in the month of January alone.
Adding this year's figure to last year's 1.6 lakh tech jobs slashed in 2022, shows that more than three lakh are left unemployed.
The way in which employees have been fired abruptly, and big tech players are hinting at more cost-cutting measures, those with jobs are also anxious.
Will things get worse from this point
Although the layoff wave has swept through different sectors, the tech sector accounts for 28 per cent of all jobs lost in 2023 so far.
Several employees from India are struggling to find another job within a borrowed time of two months, failing which they would be sent back as per H1B visa rules.
A hiring freeze in the US market has made things worse, and many of those sacked have turned entrepreneurs, with firms competing with their former employers.
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