WASHINGTON – Today, Senator Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) demanded clarity on Amazon’s mass corporate layoffs amid the company’s strong financial performance. Last month, the company announced that it plans to terminate 14,000 positions despite increasing revenue and share prices. Public reporting suggests total layoffs may reach 30,000 and the company acknowledges potential AI-caused worker displacement.
“Recent accounts have raised concerns about how these layoffs are being carried out, the broader implications for workforce stability, and whether these layoffs are just the beginning of more technology-driven downsizing,” Senator Gallego wrote in a letter to Amazon CEO Andy Jassy.
Amazon leadership has directly acknowledged potential AI-caused job losses. Mr. Jassy stated that “as [Amazon rolls] out more Generative AI and agents, […] we will need fewer people doing some of the jobs that are being done today […] In the next few years, we expect that this will reduce our total corporate workforce.” At the same time, the company has not committed to investing to retain and retrain potentially impacted workers.
“These developments are significant given Amazon’s scale and influence on the national labor market and warrant clarity as Congress evaluates the impact of technology-driven change and workforce reduction decisions on American workers,” the Senator continued. “Arizona workers and communities deserve clear information about how decisions made at the corporate level will affect job stability, advancement opportunities, and the long-term health of the regional workforce.”
Amazon is a major employer in Arizona across fulfillment, logistics, corporate, and technology roles. Any significant shift in employment practices has consequences for families, local economies, and the state’s growing technology sector.
“Technological advancement should create new opportunities for the American workforce, not leave workers behind. As Amazon continues to integrate automation and artificial intelligence into its operations, it is important that these changes occur in a transparent and responsible manner,” Senator Gallego concluded.
Senator Gallego requested answers on:
- How many jobs are being eliminated and in which states and business units;
- The role of automation and AI in these reductions;
- The availability of reassignment or retraining options for affected workers;
- How Amazon evaluates future roles at risk of automation; and
- What investments Amazon is making to retrain workers in light of its AI deployment.
Read the full letter HERE.
12/1/25