As reported by CNBC, Microsoft have today announced that it is laying off approximately 3% of its total workforce across all levels worldwide – and that’s going to affect over 6000 people.
This estimate is based on a recent official headcount of Microsoft, which sat at 228,000 employees as of June 2024. A spokesperson for Microsoft said to CNBC that “We continue to implement organizational changes necessary to best position the company for success in a dynamic marketplace.“
With Microsoft laying off 3% of total workforce, this is the largest cut in headcount seen since the Redmond giant laid off 10,000 employees back in 2023. Microsoft did have layoffs earlier this year in January, which were performance based, but these new layoffs are affecting all levels, geographies and departments. According to a Microsoft spokeperson, “One objective is to reduce layers of management.”
Earlier this month, Microsoft announced they were raising prices on Xbox hardware and games, despite console hardware sales being down, despite celebrating recording breaking revenues in their recent earnings call. If you’re in the United States, the Xbox Series X is increasing to $599.99, an increase of $100. The Series S, Xbox’s cheaper console is getting an increase to $379.99, an increase of $80. If you wanted to splash out on the special edition 2TB ‘Galaxy Black’ Series X, prepare to pay a whopping $729.99. So Microsoft are making more money than ever, yet despite that….you get my point. With Microsoft laying off 3% of Total Workforce, this is bound to effect many of Xbox’s first party teams. Expect more updates on this as more details emerge.
Update: 2030hrs BST 13/05/25 – WARN Notice Issued.
Well, I did say there’d be more updates!
A ‘WARN’ notice from Washington State (a requirement is a company is making layoffs above a certain threshold) has now been issued. Redmond, Washington State is of course where Microsoft is headquartered and the update states that the cuts at Microsoft HQ will total 1,985 people. Per Tom Warren at The Verge, 1,510 of those are in-office workers, the other 475 are remote.
Best of luck to everyone affected.
