Everyone’s wringing their hands about the latest rounds of corporate layoffs. But no one is talking about the real reason these people are being laid off.  

For example, between 2022 and 2023, Amazon laid off 27,000 employees. The company’s revenues increased the following year from approximately $574 million to $637 million, and its profits doubled.

Disney laid off 7,000 people in 2023 and then saw both revenues and profits jump the following year. CVS laid off 5,000 corporate workers that same year, and its revenues rose from $357 million to $372 million.  

3M laid off about 8,500 people in 2023, and the following year its revenues and profits rose. UBS Warburg announced layoffs of 35,000 people in 2023, then saw both revenues and profits skyrocket.

I have more examples, but I think you get the point. The companies that had significant layoffs in 2023 went on to make a lot more money in 2024. Not only that, but they grew revenues. Which invites the question: What were these workers doing?

Not much, apparently — or at least, not much of value.

I work with a lot of big companies. And the employees I interact with are good people, smart people. But, as many small-business owners will agree, I’m always amazed at the number of humans involved in doing just about everything these larger businesses do.  

I have never had an online meeting with a corporate client that involved fewer than 10 people on their side. I get emails with a dozen names copied, most of whom I have never heard of. And these people aren’t exactly cheap — most white-collar employees working at corporations that are managers or above are pulling down hundreds of thousands of dollars a year in compensation and benefits.

Corporate employees work hard, I’m sure. But they love their time off, too. Want to get something done with a large corporation? Forget about August, or most of the summer — or December, or most of the holiday season. And forget the first part of January, for that matter, or any holiday, be it in this country or the country where they reside.  

I get out-of-office replies from corporate clients for time off that can range anywhere from a few days to more than a month. Most of the replies basically tell the sender to forget about doing anything with them until they return. Is this the behavior of someone valuable to shareholders? Can workers just disappear for weeks on end and everything continues as is?  

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