PayPal’s Global Mass Layoffs Impact 220 Indian Employees

US-based fintech company PayPal has handed the pink slip to about 220 of its employees based out of India as part of its global layoff exercise. Nearly 4% of its India workforce has been impacted by the exercise, a company spokesperson confirmed to Inc42. 

“The recent staffing changes are part of our previously announced multi-year transformation to simplify our global operations, strengthen execution, and position the company for long-term growth,” the spokesperson said. 

The layoffs likely impacted roles in tech, engineering, operations, payments and finance across the company’s offices in Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. Moneycontrol, which reported the development first, said around 600 employees across PayPal’s India operations were impacted.  

Reported earlier this year, PayPal is said to be eyeing trimming its global workforce by about 20%, about 4,760 jobs, over multiple years. The overhaul is also intended to generate at least $1.5 Bn in savings.

An impacted employee told the publication that employees were asked to join a call on August 31, where they were informed about the layoffs. Their access to company systems was revoked shortly after.

The job cuts  in India come as PayPal undertakes a broader organisational overhaul to simplify operations, lower costs and focus investment on areas it believes can deliver stronger long-term growth.

The exercise is being rolled out in phases, beginning in the Asia-Pacific region, including India, before moving to the US, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, according to media reports.

“We are simplifying our organisation and reducing our cost structure to increase investment for long-term growth. Over time, we will shift from stabilisation to targeted growth investment and accelerate our momentum with next-generation innovations,” CEO Enrique Lores said earlier while disclosing PayPal’s Q2 performance.

Layoffs Becomes A Recurring Theme In The Tech Sector

PayPal’s layoffs come amid a broader wave of job cuts across the technology and startup ecosystem. Multiple reports of mass layoffs undertaken by tech giants have surfaced within this week itself. 

While it was reported that tech giant Oracle could cut about 3,000 jobs in India earlier this week, Uber is axing 200-250 Indian jobs as part of a broader global restructuring that would see it cut 3,300 roles.  The developments are not an isolated event within this week. Multiple mass firings have happened within this year.

Earlier this year, Amazon announced 16,000 job cuts globally, while Meta downsized its metaverse division by around 1,500 employees as it shifted its focus towards AI. Atlassian, the parent company of Jira, also announced 1,600 job cuts, with India-based employees accounting for around 16% of the impacted workforce.

In India, ecommerce enabler GoKwik laid off around 100-120 employees as part of a restructuring exercise, while Livspace cut around 1,000 jobs as part of an AI push.

AI-focused healthcare technology company Innovaccer also reportedly reduced its workforce by around 350 employees, while IPO-bound Acko trimmed approximately 5% of its workforce as part of an AI-led restructuring.

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