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Amazon to wind up some of its Indian operations – which means job cuts

By Nithya Bose in Amazon News, posted November 28, 2022

Amazon will shut down some of its Indian operations including meal deliveries.

The move shows even the massive Indian market with 1.4 billion potential customers isn't resistant to Amazon CEO Andy Jassy's cost-cutting.

Amazon will quit another service that provides huge doorstep deliveries of packaged consumer goods to small companies.

The changes are likely to mean a few hundred of the workforce will be laid off.

A source said it makes Amazon depend on its core offerings like online retail in the country.

Jassy is cutting costs and jobs around the world as Amazon's growth slows in numerous areas.

The slowdown in India highlights Amazon's challenges in one of the world's fastest-growing e-commerce marketplaces.

It faces regulatory scrutiny as well as competition from Indian conglomerates Reliance and Tata, as well as Walmart's Flipkart.

During the previous decade, it has spent billions of dollars on everything from grocery delivery to payments in India.

However, the corporation has not achieved the kind of domination in India that it has in markets like the US.

The source said numerous projects under beta testing are also going to be scrapped.

Amazon has announced the closure of its Amazon Academy learning platform in the coming months.

It provides online exam preparation materials for students attempting to get admission to India's medical and engineering institutes.

The source said job cuts in the country are expected to be in the hundreds or a fraction of Amazon's India e-commerce payroll of over 10,000.

Amazon has above 100,000 full-time workers in the country for its global operations.

The corporation has caught the fury of a labor union representing tech workers for offering "voluntary separation" offers and giving staff only until December 6 to decide.

Despite the ongoing battles in the US, Amazon in India doesn't have a labor union.

Amazon plans to shed 10,000 positions globally, its largest-ever workforce reduction.

It has forecasted the lowest revenue rise in company history for the holiday quarter.

Mr. Jassy had imposed a hiring freeze on some corporate positions and had closed numerous experimental and smaller projects.

Amazon Food, the meal delivery service it is currently terminating, was introduced in India in 2020.

It serves meals from restaurants and other providers, such as paratha stuffed bread and McDonald's burgers and fries.

Amazon's business-customer division will continue to offer goods such as food and medical supplies to small retailers and wholesale buyers.

But will no longer provide door delivery of packaged consumer goods.

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The company said: “We are discontinuing these programs in a phased manner to take care of current customers and partners.

“We remain committed to India and will continue to invest across those areas where we can bring value to our customers.”

Amazon has added millions of sellers to its platform in India over the last decade, expanding into areas like grocery and digital payments, as well as selling fashion, cosmetic items, and travel tickets.

Groceries, consumer electronics, fashion, and business-to-business goods, according to the corporation, would be among its priority areas in India.

Source: The Washington Post

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