Apple to lay off staff within its corporate retail teams: Report

After many months of promising no layoffs, the iPhone giant is now joining a long list of tech companies that have announced job cuts over the past year.

After holding off on corporate layoff including pulling every lever to cut cost cuts and trim budget, the iPhone maker is now planning to make a small number of job cuts in some corporate retail teams, Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The layoffs would impact positions in what Apple calls its development and preservation teams, the report said, adding that the number of positions being eliminated could not be ascertained and was likely very small. The people also told Bloomberg that the affected groups “are responsible for the construction and upkeep of Apple retail stores and others.”

The iPhone maker did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the report.

The global economic downturn that started in the second quarter of 2022 is beginning to have a major impact on tech companies. At least 553 companies have let go of 166,004 tech workers, according to Layoffs.FYI, a site that has been tracking all tech layoffs using data compiled from public reports.

Last month, Facebook-parent company Meta announced it would cut 10,000 jobs, just four months after it let go of 11,000 employees, making the social giant the first Big Tech company to announce a second round of mass layoffs. In March, electric truck company Rivian also said it would let go of 6% of its workforce in an effort to cut costs.