Tech Layoffs Accompanying Bay Area's Tech Boom
Even with the success of Bay Area tech companies, several have let go hundreds of employees. Some of the layoffs were the result of growing staff too quickly, slowing sales or company reorganization. While the tech industry is still strong, these layoffs often lead to a shift in office needs and smaller offices.
Here are some of the biggest layoffs to hit the Bay Area so far in 2017.
Oracle cut 441 jobs in its Santa Clara hardware division as part of a refocusing of this division in March. Leading up to these layoffs, hardware product revenue dropped 13% and new software license sales fell 20% from September to November 2016 due to the advent of cloud computing. The company plans to maintain its Santa Clara facility, according to the Mercury News.
Following a deal with Verizon, the telecommunications giant said it would lay off 2,100 people. So far, 430 California employees will be laid off, effective Aug. 14. Its Sunnyvale headquarters will get the brunt of those cuts, with 263 jobs eliminated. The tech company will cut 83 jobs in San Francisco and 84 in Los Angeles. Yahoo has endured its fair share of job cuts, with its workforce dropping by 46% during the last five years, according to the New York Times.
Cisco will cut 1,100 jobs in addition to the 5,500 jobs announced August 2016 due to declining revenue. So far, it has officially laid off nearly 400 in San Jose in 2017. It laid off 900 in San Jose in 2016. The tech company also is shedding its 471K SF Milpitas campus in 2017 after opting for an early lease termination with Hudson Pacific.
SoundCloud will close its San Francisco and London offices and cut 173 jobs, about 40% of its employees. No word yet on how many jobs will be lost in San Francisco. Employees will be consolidated into the Berlin and New York offices. The company said these layoffs would ensure the music-streaming service’s long-term success even though it more than doubled its revenue in 2016, the San Francisco Business Times reports.
Zenefits cut nearly half its workforce in February with 254 positions eliminated at its San Francisco headquarters and another 150 at its office in Tempe, Arizona, according to Business Insider. Another handful of employees were let go elsewhere, bringing the total layoffs to 430. Its staff is now about 500. The HR software company’s problems began soon after venture capitalists provided $582M during the company’s first two years and valued it at $4.5B. Zenefits expanded its staff too quickly and many employees did not know what the others were doing.
LeEco will lay off 350 U.S. employees and stop its massive Silicon Valley expansion plans, which would have developed 49 acres in Santa Clara. Official layoffs total 180 in San Jose with another 95 in San Diego, all of which will go into effect July 23.
Visa’s layoffs were the result of its $23B purchase of Visa Europe and shifts in the payment industry. It is eliminating about 800 to 1,500 roles globally while also creating new jobs that align with its future plans, the San Francisco Business Times reports. The layoffs in the Bay Area included 123 in January and 58 in March at its Foster City office. Visa’s Bay Area staff totals 4,000.
