With a recent pattern materializing where technology giants have executed mass layoffs, Apple is supposedly bucking the trend, keeping its staff retained for the most part. However, one report claims that the California-based firm is not immune to the changing global landscape, and it is possible it may enforce some harsh decisions in 2023.
From September 2019 to September 2022, Apple’s workforce only grew 20 percent, but other companies were hiring in droves
The mass layoffs started with Meta, who cut 11,000 jobs, with Microsoft following suit, announcing that it would let go 10,000 employees, downsizing multiple divisions, including gaming. Amazon was no different, stating that it will slash 18,000 employees, with Google being the latest entrant, cutting off the employment of 12,000 workers. In all this chaos, Apple appears to be the one weathering the storm, though the iPhone maker was still reported to have laid off non-seasonal employees.
Apple followed a non-aggressive recruitment approach because, according to the statistics published on AppleInsider, the technology giant only hired 20 percent more individuals from September 2019 to September 2022, increasing its full-time employee count to 164,000. In contrast, Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, and Google were hiring left, right and center, with up to a whopping 94 percent increase in new hires for the same period.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Apple has a strong business foundation, and paired that with its slow hiring pace; it managed to stave off any mass layoffs. Still, the company is not immune to a slowing economy, and it might have to take drastic measures in order to stop the bleeding of money. For instance, back in 2022, we reported that CEO Tim Cook would hire in a very ‘deliberate’ manner this year, only recruiting talent that brought the most value to the company.
In order to keep its cash reserves healthy, Apple might be forced to make changes or outright cut employee perks. It does not provide free meals to employees present on its corporate campus, which is the exact opposite approach followed by Google and Meta, and though this decision might not be met with positive feedback, it is still a way to prevent unnecessary cash drain. We will continue to monitor Apple’s patterns throughout the year and inform our readers if the company has made such a decision.
News Source: The Wall Street Journal
