LinkedIn lays off 668 employees only five months after cutting 700 jobs

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Over 600 people have lost their job as part of "streamlining" LinkedIn's decision making.

LinkedIn logo at a tech conference
(Image credit: Future)

What you need to know

  • LinkedIn just laid off 668 roles across its engineering, product, talent and finance teams.
  • The cuts were made as part of the company "adapting [its] organizational structures and streamlining [its] decision making."
  • LinkedIn laid off over 700 employees earlier this year in May.

LinkedIn announced that it will lay off 668 employees today. The move was announced in a news post by the company that explained the layoffs were part of the company adapting its organizational structures and streamlining its decision making.

"Talent changes are a difficult, but necessary and regular part of managing our business. The changes we shared with our team today will result in a reduction of approximately 668 roles across our engineering, product, talent and finance teams. 

While we are adapting our organizational structures and streamlining our decision making, we are continuing to invest in strategic priorities for our future and to ensure we continue to deliver value for our members and customers. We are committed to providing our full support to all impacted employees during this transition and ensuring that they are treated with care and respect."

This isn't the first significant set of layoffs this year for LinkedIn. Back in May, the company laid off over 700 people. Those cuts were also made for organizational reasons, as well as in an effort to improve "agility and growth."

Microsoft, which owns LinkedIn, announced that it would cut 10,000 jobs earlier this year.

While LinkedIn will have soon laid off over 1,000 employees this year, the company is doing well financially. LinkedIn's revenue was over $15 billion in the most recent fiscal year. That was the first year that the company's revenue was over $15 billion but LinkedIn brought in over $10 billion annually back in 2021 and the preceding two years.

Layoffs are unfortunate for those affected those that depend on those individuals financially, but they are common in the business world.

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Sean Endicott
Sean Endicott
News Writer and apps editor

Sean Endicott is a tech journalist at Windows Central, specializing in Windows, Microsoft software, AI, and PCs. He's covered major launches, from Windows 10 and 11 to the rise of AI tools like ChatGPT. Sean's journey began with the Lumia 740, leading to strong ties with app developers. Outside writing, he coaches American football, utilizing Microsoft services to manage his team. He studied broadcast journalism at Nottingham Trent University and is active on X @SeanEndicott_ and Threads @sean_endicott_. 

5 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Jcmg62
    1400 people unemployed. Homes lost, savings wiped out, dreams dashed... But hey, at least the company is doing well.

    There was a time when companies didn't make redundancies when they were profitable. Redundancy and retrenchment were tools used by HR when times were bad and profits were sliding.

    Neither of those things are happening at Microsoft. They're posting record profits.

    They're quite literally destroying people's lives to boost their already enormous profits.

    PLC's and global empires have a certain amount of social responsibility, whether they like it or not. They're expected to create jobs and spread wealth.

    Man, I'm so done with the greed of big tech. I honestly hope the EU rips their heart and lungs out.
    Reply
  • Village_Idiot
    Jcmg62 said:
    1400 people unemployed. Homes lost, savings wiped out, dreams dashed... But hey, at least the company is doing well.

    There was a time when companies didn't make redundancies when they were profitable. Redundancy and retrenchment were tools used by HR when times were bad and profits were sliding.

    Neither of those things are happening at Microsoft. They're posting record profits.

    They're quite literally destroying people's lives to boost their already enormous profits.

    PLC's and global empires have a certain amount of social responsibility, whether they like it or not. They're expected to create jobs and spread wealth.

    Man, I'm so done with the greed of big tech. I honestly hope the EU rips their heart and lungs out.
    Out of around 221,000 total employees? I suppose Microsoft could just keep eating costs until it goes out business. Then around 220,000 people would be out of jobs.

    1,400 is a drop in the bucket. Easily absorbed into other tech companies.
    Reply
  • Jcmg62
    Village_Idiot said:
    Out of around 221,000 total employees? I suppose Microsoft could just keep eating costs until it goes out business. Then around 220,000 people would be out of jobs.

    1,400 is a drop in the bucket. Easily absorbed into other tech companies.
    Its not eating costs. It's making billions and billion every quarter. That's the point I was making.

    If Microsoft was losing money or struggling, I'd get the need to cut jobs to save the company, but that's not the case. It's a trillion dollar business that makes more in profit than the entire GDP of a small country.
    Reply
  • Iamdumbguy
    Jcmg62 said:
    1400 people unemployed. Homes lost, savings wiped out, dreams dashed... But hey, at least the company is doing well.

    There was a time when companies didn't make redundancies when they were profitable. Redundancy and retrenchment were tools used by HR when times were bad and profits were sliding.

    Neither of those things are happening at Microsoft. They're posting record profits.

    They're quite literally destroying people's lives to boost their already enormous profits.

    PLC's and global empires have a certain amount of social responsibility, whether they like it or not. They're expected to create jobs and spread wealth.

    Man, I'm so done with the greed of big tech. I honestly hope the EU rips their heart and lungs out.
    It's a great sign that when a company is doing well, that's the time to put the hurt on the workforce. The University of Chicago is truly one of the evilest places on earth.
    Reply
  • Village_Idiot
    Jcmg62 said:
    Its not eating costs. It's making billions and billion every quarter. That's the point I was making.

    If Microsoft was losing money or struggling, I'd get the need to cut jobs to save the company, but that's not the case. It's a trillion dollar business that makes more in profit than the entire GDP of a small country.
    Actually, by keeping those 1400 people it is eating costs. Sticking to inefficient processes or keeping unproductive workers on the payroll is eating costs; it eats into LinkedIn's budget. LinkedIn doesn't have an unlimited budget; 1,400 people at an average salary of $65,000/year is $91,000,000 a year. That's $91 million that can be put back into LinkedIn's budget to develop new processes and streamline and improve others. It also frees up funds to recruit and hire new employees with the skill sets it needs and train others. Businesses have to adapt and introduce new processes and streamline current ones if they want to stay in business. That's not free, and it can cost a lot of money. It's Business 101 and that's how businesses have been working for thousands of years.

    That is part of life. Get over it.
    Reply