Layoffs of over ten thousand workers were announced just this week

These are the online trading giant eBay, the British bank Barclays, the credit card company American Express and the Swedish car manufacturer Volvo, which together will cut about 12 thousand jobs.

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The announcements come from different industries and under different circumstances, but they once again raise the question of what is happening to the global labor market: are companies simply dealing with business pressure, or are they changing their workforce structure more deeply, among other things due to the advancement of automation and artificial intelligence?

The biggest cut announced this week comes from Barclays. The British bank announced on Thursday a plan to cut about 5,000 jobs, about 5% of its workforce, by the end of the year. According to Reuters, about 60% of the cuts are expected to affect support positions, including software developers. The bank stated that it uses technology, including AI, to reduce costs and improve the return on its operations. The announcement was made alongside the publication of the third quarter results, in which profit before tax amounted to 2.3 billion pounds, an increase compared to the previous year, but below analysts’ forecasts.

Circumstances change

On Friday, American Express joined the trend and announced a cut of about 3,500 jobs, about 5% of its global workforce. The announcement is particularly notable because it came alongside strong quarterly results: the company’s net profit increased by 28% and reached 3.71 billion dollars. The company explained that the purpose of the move is to improve organizational efficiency and make it more flexible, and did not react to the weakening of business activity. Its revenues in the quarter increased by 9% to 20.1 billion dollars.

eBay also announced this week a cut of about 1,000 jobs, about 9% of its workforce. According to an internal memo from CEO Jamie Iannone, the move is intended to simplify the company’s structure and direct resources to its fastest growing businesses. The decision comes after the company already cut about 800 jobs in February, while its stock has risen by almost 40% since the beginning of the year.

At Volvo the picture is different. The car manufacturer announced on Friday about another 2,500 job cuts, mainly in Sweden after reporting a shift to an operating loss. The company is facing uneven demand for electric cars, tariff pressures and challenging market conditions in China.

The four announcements illustrate that there is no single explanation for the wave of cuts: in some companies it is a structural change and preparation for new technologies, while in others it is a response to actual business pressures. However, the accumulation of announcements suggests a profound change in the way large companies define the manpower they need in an age of automation and artificial intelligence.