LinkedIn Joins Tech Giants In Layoff Drive, Cutting Over 700 Jobs

(CTN News) – In the midst of tech sector layoffs, LinkedIn, the world’s largest social media platform for professionals, has announced that it is laying off over 700 employees and closing down applications in China for a variety of reasons.

The CEO of the company, Ryan Roslansky, wrote in a letter to employees on Monday that the decision was based on shifting customer behavior and slower revenue growth.

Throughout our journey to lead LinkedIn through this rapidly evolving landscape, we are making changes to our Global Business Organization and our China strategy that will result in the reduction of 716 jobs.”

Despite having 20,000 employees, the platform has seen an increase in revenue every quarter last year. However, it has also been affected by the weakening global economy.

Additionally, Meta has announced in March that it is going to lay off 10,000 additional employees after major job cuts last year. Some of the other tech giants have also announced job cuts this year.

According to Layoffs.fyi, an organization that monitors layoffs, more than 270 thousand tech jobs have been eliminated worldwide in the past six months.

LinkedIn generates revenue through advertisement sales and subscription fees charged to recruiters and professionals.

Several tech giants have contributed to recent layoffs, including Amazon, which made its largest layoff in history by laying off 27,000 employees. A total of 12,000 employees have also been laid off by Alphabet.

Additionally, Layoffs.fyi pointed out that 5,000 technology jobs had been eliminated in May alone prior to LinkedIn’s announcement.

It has announced some 10,000 job cuts in the past few months and has taken a $1.2 billion charge as a result of the layoffs. Microsoft acquired LinkedIn in 2016 for about $26 billion.

LinkedIn’s CEO commented: “As we plan for [the fiscal year of 2024], we expect a challenging macroeconomic environment. We will continue to manage our expenses while investing in strategic growth areas.”

By August 9, LinkedIn will cease operating its app in China as part of the change.

Despite our initial progress, InCareer faced fierce competition and a challenging macroeconomic climate, which ultimately led to the decision to discontinue the service,” the company states.

The California-based platform stated: “It will retain a presence in China, including providing services to companies operating there for the purpose of hiring and training employees outside of the country.”

As Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube have been banned from operating in China for more than a decade, LinkedIn is the only Western-based social media platform operating in the country. It was announced in 2010 that Google would be withdrawing from China.

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