Anxious wait for employees at Derbyshire Amazon warehouse as tech giant plans more than 18,000 job cuts

Amazon plans to cut more than 18,000 jobs as it looks to drastically reduce costs – representing the most severe round of layoffs since the company was founded.

As reported by Sky News, Amazon chief executive Andy Jassy has confirmed that the bulk of the job losses will come from the consumer retail area of the company – which includes its online stores.

It is believed that UK jobs are at risk as a result of the cuts, but Amazon is yet to reveal where and how many redundancies will be made across the country.

Amazon is a major employer in the Barlborough area, with their distribution centre on High Hazels Road creating 200 permanent jobs when it opened back in 2019.

In 2021, the Derbyshire Times were invited to the site – and were told that the warehouse had grown to accommodate 400 staff, along with additional seasonal workers.

Amazon employees in Derbyshire must now wait to find out if their jobs are secure – with Amazon planning to communicate their plans for the series of redundancies on January 18.

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The company employs more than 1.5m people globally, and saw sales boom during the pandemic as more people shopped online. It has experienced difficulties in recent months, however, with rising inflation and consumers spending less amid the cost of living crisis.