2024 is shaping up to be another tough year for workers in the United States. Last year, tech companies laid off thousands of workers. This year, the layoffs are spreading to other sectors. UPS, Amazon, Nike, Microsoft, Google, Mattel, American Airlines, and many other companies announced layoffs recently. Managements are anticipating a pullback in consumer spending and they are trying to cut costs.

As Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerburg explained, the layoff in 2023 was due to Covid adjustment. Meta hired too many new workers during the recovery and they needed to trim back. It worked so well that they are continuing with layoff this year to become “leaner.”

Leaner and Meaner

Oh man, this brings back memories. I went through many rounds of layoffs when I was an engineer. Companies laid off a ton of workers during the Dot Com Burst in 2000 and the Great Recession in 2008. Management always wants to be leaner and meaner. It’s tough on the workers, though. After a few rounds, the remaining people aren’t just leaner and meaner. They are “skinny and pissed”, as Dan put it. (Dan was an old grizzled veteran of the semiconductor industry when I was just a young buck.)

Many workers are probably at this point today. Clearly, layoffs aren’t good for the rank and file. It’s hard to find a job when so many companies are cutting back. The remaining workers are demoralized and need to work more than ever to cover their old coworkers. Layoff is terrible for workers.

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