October 2024 has seen a fresh wave of layoffs sweeping across various industries globally, with tech companies and startups among the hardest hit. As economies continue to navigate challenges ranging from fluctuating stock markets to changing consumer behaviors, corporations are reassessing their workforce needs, resulting in thousands of job losses.
Several well-established firms, including Meta, TikTok, and ABBYY, have opted to downsize as part of strategic shifts, restructuring efforts, or financial adaptations to the current economic climate. These layoffs are affecting employees across various levels and departments, showing how the ripple effects of larger economic concerns are impacting individuals’ livelihoods worldwide.
This trend of workforce reduction, particularly in October, reflects companies’ need to stay lean and focused amidst a mix of economic pressures. The past few years, especially post-pandemic, saw many tech giants and startups scaling their operations rapidly in anticipation of continued growth.
However, with shifting market realities, these companies are now adjusting their organizational structures to align with the new demands, often leaving their workforce at the receiving end. Here, we take a look at some major layoffs in October 2024, covering the reasons behind these decisions and the impacts on employees across different sectors.
ABBYY
Founded in the USSR and eventually becoming an international player in software and automation, ABBYY has made headlines for a massive layoff affecting hundreds of employees. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, ABBYY relocated many of its Russian developers to Europe. However, in October 2024, these relocated workers faced unexpected layoffs as the company “reorganized” its offices in Cyprus, Hungary, and Serbia, ultimately leaving most of these expatriate developers jobless.
ABBYY described the move as a necessary step in its broader business transformation, aiming to boost future growth by focusing on product and innovation. Although the exact number of employees laid off has not been confirmed by the company, reports indicate anywhere between 200 to 400 workers lost their jobs.
Meta
Meta has also implemented a series of layoffs this month, adding to its trend of workforce reduction which began in 2022. Known for its ambitious vision of the “metaverse” and Reality Labs, Meta has faced financial strain due to overly optimistic hiring post-pandemic.
The October layoffs affected employees across various departments, including Instagram, WhatsApp, and the high-profile Reality Labs division, signaling Meta’s continued efforts to narrow its focus amidst economic uncertainties. These layoffs align with CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s declared “year of efficiency,” where the company aims to trim excess operations and align its resources to meet strategic goals.
Although Meta’s approach does not involve mass layoffs on a single day, smaller targeted layoffs are happening in phases, affecting specific teams. Meta’s downsizing impacts its projects and initiatives, as the company seeks to operate efficiently with fewer employees in an evolving tech sector that increasingly values lean operations over broad staffing.
TikTok
TikTok, the social media giant owned by ByteDance, has also made significant workforce adjustments in October 2024. In Malaysia alone, over 500 content moderation roles have reportedly been eliminated as TikTok leans further into artificial intelligence for monitoring and moderating content.
While TikTok had previously relied heavily on human moderators to manage its vast content, the recent layoffs suggest a shift towards automation, a strategy aimed at cutting operational costs and increasing efficiency. The decision has left many employees unsettled, as content moderation roles had been a stable part of TikTok’s workforce in Southeast Asia.
CareerBuilder and Monster
The online recruitment industry has not been spared either, as Monster have collectively reduced their workforce by about 15%. The combined entity laid off approximately 200 employees across various departments, including sales, marketing, and IT. This restructuring is seen as part of an effort to consolidate operations and minimize redundancy following the merger of these two major platforms. For an industry that thrives on connecting job seekers with employment opportunities, layoffs within recruitment firms signal a paradoxical twist in the employment landscape.
Upwork
Upwork, the popular freelancing platform, has also reduced its workforce by 21% as it pivots towards a leaner operational model. CEO Hayden Brown cited a focus on profitable growth as the primary reason for the downsizing, alongside an increased reliance on automation and third-party services. By restructuring team hierarchies and simplifying internal processes, Upwork aims to reduce costs by approximately $60 million annually. This is yet another example of how tech firms, even those focused on freelance and remote work models, are consolidating their workforce as a means of financial discipline.
Nikola
Nikola, the American fuel cell truck manufacturer, announced layoffs impacting 135 employees this month. Following previous rounds of job cuts in 2022 and 2023, the company’s ongoing financial challenges have necessitated another reduction in workforce.
Nikola’s CEO, Steve Girsky, described the layoffs as a painful but necessary step towards extending the company’s financial runway. Nikola’s cash-flow issues have limited its ability to sell more stock, making downsizing a key tactic in its strategy to remain operational. With a focus on hydrogen fuel cell technology, Nikola faces unique challenges, as the industry’s high cost and specialized nature make it difficult to sustain large-scale production without significant financial backing.
