Amazon Layoffs: At Least 100 Employees in India Hit by Latest Global Job Cuts: What We Know and What Affected Employees Should Do

Amazon has reportedly laid off at least 100 employees in India as part of a new round of global job cuts. Media reports say fewer than 1,000 white-collar roles are affected worldwide, across India, the US and the UK. In India, the cuts are reported to be concentrated in retail and customer-service functions within Amazon’s Stores business. Amazon has confirmed the reductions but has not published an official India number.

By the FinanceChecks.com Editorial Team | Published October 9, 2026 | Last reviewed October 9, 2026 | 10-minute read

Quick answer: The India figure of “at least 100” comes from people familiar with the matter cited by The Economic Times, not from an Amazon announcement. Amazon described the number of affected roles as small and said it is supporting the people affected. This is the third round of cuts to touch Amazon’s Indian operations in about a year, but it is far smaller than the November 2025 and January 2026 rounds.

What Has Happened at Amazon

Amazon has started another round of job cuts, with fewer than 1,000 white-collar positions being eliminated globally, according to reports published on October 8 and 9, 2026.

Employees in India, the US and the UK are among those affected.

The key facts, as currently reported:

• At least 100 employees in India are reported to be affected.
• The affected functions in India are described mainly as retail and customer service. One report adds seller support and engineering teams within the Stores business.
• Locations: Deccan Herald reports that the affected employees are based in the Bengaluru and Hyderabad offices.
• Amazon’s response: The company confirmed the cuts and said it changed parts of its Stores business to improve operations and focus on customer priorities. It did not say how many employees in India were affected or give details of the support on offer.

Because the India number comes from unnamed sources, treat “100” as a floor, not a final count. The real number could be higher, and Amazon has not confirmed it.

Why the Timing Is Drawing Attention

The cuts surfaced just as Amazon’s Great Indian Festival sale began. The festive sale opened on October 7, 2026, which is why many readers see the layoffs as a sharp contrast: record-scale festive selling on one side and a team restructuring on the other.

There is a simple explanation for why both can happen together. Festive-season hiring is mostly seasonal and operational, covering warehouses, delivery and fulfilment. Amazon said last month that it would create over 1.6 lakh seasonal work opportunities across its pan-India network for its e-commerce and quick-commerce businesses. The layoffs, in contrast, hit corporate and white-collar roles in the Stores organisation.

So the two headlines are not contradictory. Amazon is adding temporary operational capacity while trimming parts of its permanent office-based workforce.

Amazon’s Layoff Timeline: From 2023 to October 2026

This latest round makes more sense when you place it against the earlier ones.

Period	Global reductions	India impact (as reported)
Early 2023	About 27,000 roles over two announcements (18,000 in January, 9,000 in March)	More than 1,000 employees in India, per Deccan Herald
October 2025	About 14,000 corporate roles	Part of the restructuring that preceded the next India round
November 2025	Part of the same restructuring	More than 1,000 employees in India, with estimates going up to about 1,500
January 2026	About 16,000 roles	More than 500 employees, with estimates of 500 to 700
October 2026	Fewer than 1,000 white-collar roles	At least 100 employees

Taken together, Amazon eliminated roughly 30,000 corporate jobs between late 2025 and January 2026. Compared with that, the October 2026 round is much smaller.

Did Amazon Say More Cuts Were Not Coming?

In January 2026, Amazon’s senior vice president for people experience and technology, Beth Galetti, addressed whether broad reductions would now come every few months. She said that was not the plan, while adding that teams would keep evaluating ownership, speed and capacity and make adjustments as appropriate.

The October round fits that description more closely: a targeted trim described as a “small number” of roles, rather than a large announced programme.

Why Is Amazon Cutting Jobs While Still Investing in India?

Amazon has framed its restructuring around reducing layers, increasing ownership and removing bureaucracy. At the same time, reports say the company is raising its spending on technology, AI and infrastructure.

In India, Amazon recently opened a large Bengaluru campus that is expected to support thousands of employees across e-commerce, payments, technology and seller services. The Amazon India workforce is estimated at about 1.2 lakh people, according to Deccan Herald.

That points to a reshuffling of roles and priorities rather than a withdrawal from India. Jobs in some customer-service and retail-operations functions are being reduced, while investment continues in technology and infrastructure.

This is our reading of the reported facts, not an Amazon statement. Amazon has not explained in detail why these specific roles were chosen.

What Support Does Amazon Usually Offer Affected Employees?

Amazon has not published the exact package for this round. In earlier rounds, however, the company said affected employees who cannot find or do not want another role at Amazon would receive transition support. That support included severance pay, outplacement services and health insurance benefits (as applicable).

For the January 2026 cuts, staff in the US, UK and India were reported to receive a non-working notice period on full pay and benefits, followed by a severance offer, with the length varying by country and local requirements.

Do not assume the same terms apply this time. The details depend on your country, role, tenure and the letter you receive.

Your Rights as an Employee in India: What the Law Says

If you are directly affected, or want to understand how layoffs work in India, this is the part that matters most.

The Industrial Relations Code is Now in Force

The Industrial Relations Code, 2020 has been in force across India since November 21, 2025. It replaced the older Industrial Disputes Act for retrenchment, layoff and closure rules.

For a person who qualifies as a “worker” and has completed at least one year of continuous service, retrenchment generally requires:

1. One month’s written notice stating the reasons, or wages in lieu of notice
2. Retrenchment compensation of 15 days’ average pay for every completed year of continuous service, with a part of a year over six months counted as a full year
3. Notice to the appropriate government

The Code also requires the employer to contribute 15 days’ wages per retrenched worker to a Worker Re-skilling Fund, so that the amount can be credited to the worker’s account within 45 days of retrenchment.

The Catch: Not Every White-Collar Employee Is a “Worker”

This is the point many employees miss. The statutory protections apply to people who fall within the Code’s definition of a “worker”, and that definition depends on the nature of your duties, not your job title. Managerial and some supervisory roles are generally outside it.

If you are outside that definition, your entitlements usually come from:

• Your offer letter and employment contract (notice period and termination clauses)
• The company’s separation package
• The state Shops and Establishments Act, where it applies
• Gratuity, provident fund and leave encashment rules, which apply separately

In short, whether you get a statutory minimum or only the contractual and company package depends on your role. A lawyer or labour-law professional can check this against your documents.

An Illustrative Calculation

Here is a simple example of how 15 days’ pay per year works. This is only an illustration and not a prediction of anyone’s package, because the Code’s definition of wages and the person’s status decide the real figure.

Item	Example
Monthly wages counted	₹1,00,000
Daily rate (monthly wages ÷ 26)	About ₹3,846
15 days’ pay	About ₹57,692
Completed years of service	5
Retrenchment compensation	About ₹2,88,462

Notice pay, gratuity, leave encashment and any company severance are separate from this.

What Affected Employees Should Do Now: A Money Checklist

As a finance-focused guide, this is what we would put first if you have just received a termination notice.

1. Read every document before signing anything. Check the termination letter, the separation agreement, the last working day and any non-working notice period. Ask HR in writing if something is unclear.
2. List what you are owed. This includes notice pay, severance, leave encashment, pending salary, variable pay or bonus, and gratuity if you have completed the required years of service.
3. Check your equity. If you hold RSUs or stock options, find out how unvested and vested units are treated after separation.
4. Protect your health cover. Employer group insurance generally ends with employment. Ask about transitional cover and compare an individual or family floater policy before the gap becomes a problem.
5. Keep your Provident Fund intact where possible. Link your UAN to your next employer instead of withdrawing, unless you truly need the money. Withdrawals can cost you retirement savings.
6. Build a bridge budget. Add up EMIs, rent, insurance premiums, SIPs and school fees. Aim to know how many months your savings and severance can cover.
7. Prioritise essentials. If cash is tight, keep insurance premiums and EMIs current, and pause discretionary SIPs and spending before missing a loan payment that affects your credit score.
8. Understand tax on severance. Severance and other payments can have different tax treatment. Confirm with a chartered accountant before filing.
9. Start the job search early. Update your profile, tell your network and use any outplacement support offered.

A few things to avoid: do not take on new high-interest debt to cover the gap, and do not make large investment decisions in a panic.

What Does This Mean for the Indian Job Market?

One round of about 100 job cuts does not by itself signal a collapse in hiring at Amazon or in Indian technology. But it does add to a pattern.

Large technology and e-commerce companies are flattening management layers, trimming overlapping roles and investing heavily in AI and automation. Customer service, seller support and routine retail operations are among the functions most exposed to that kind of change, which is consistent with where these cuts are reported.

For people working in those functions, the practical lesson is to keep skills current, keep an emergency fund and keep a professional network active, whatever your employer.

Amazon India Layoffs: Key Points at a Glance

Question	Answer
What happened?	New round of global job cuts at Amazon
How many roles globally?	Fewer than 1,000, according to reports
How many in India?	At least 100, per sources cited by The Economic Times
Which functions in India?	Mainly retail and customer service; one report adds seller support and engineering
Which locations?	Bengaluru and Hyderabad offices, per Deccan Herald
Has Amazon confirmed the cuts?	Yes, describing them as a small number of roles
Has Amazon confirmed the India number?	No
Which other countries are affected?	The US and the UK
Previous India rounds	November 2025 (1,000 plus) and January 2026 (500 to 700)
Is Amazon leaving India?	No sign of that; it continues to invest, including a new Bengaluru campus

FAQs: Amazon India Layoffs

How many Amazon employees in India have been laid off?

At least 100, according to people familiar with the matter cited by The Economic Times. Amazon has not confirmed an India-specific figure, so the real number may differ.

Which Amazon teams in India are affected?

Reports say retail and customer-service functions within the Stores business. One report also lists seller support and engineering teams.

How many jobs is Amazon cutting globally in this round?

Reports say fewer than 1,000 white-collar roles worldwide. Amazon described the number as small.

Is this connected to the Great Indian Festival sale?

The timing overlaps with the sale, which began on October 7, 2026, but there is no evidence that the sale caused the layoffs. Festive hiring is largely seasonal and operational, while these cuts affect corporate roles.

What severance will affected employees in India get?

Amazon has not published the terms for this round. In earlier rounds, it offered severance pay, outplacement services and health insurance benefits where applicable. Your own package depends on your role, tenure and the letter you receive.

Do laid-off employees get 15 days’ pay for each year of service?

Only if they qualify as a “worker” under the Industrial Relations Code and meet the service condition. Many white-collar and managerial employees fall outside that definition and rely on their contract and company package.

Will Amazon do more layoffs?

Amazon said in January 2026 that broad reductions every few months were not its plan, but it also said teams will keep making adjustments. No further cuts have been announced.

Is Amazon scaling down in India?

There is no sign of that. Amazon continues to invest in India, including a large new Bengaluru campus, even as it restructures some roles.

What should I do if I am affected?

Read your documents carefully, list everything you are owed, check your health cover and RSUs, protect your provident fund and plan a budget for the gap. For legal questions, speak to a qualified labour-law professional.

Bottom Line

Amazon’s latest round is small in global terms but meaningful for the people involved. At least 100 employees in India are reported affected, mainly in retail and customer-service roles, and the company has confirmed the cuts without publishing an India figure.

The more important story for readers is practical. The rules on notice and compensation depend heavily on whether you are legally a “worker”, most white-collar packages depend on your contract and the company’s offer, and your finances need a plan for any gap between jobs.

Watch for two things in the coming days: whether Amazon or the government gives a clearer India figure, and whether other e-commerce or technology companies announce similar trims after the festive season.

Disclaimer

This article is for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute legal, employment, tax, financial or professional advice. Figures for India come from media reports citing unnamed sources and may change. Employment rights, severance and tax treatment depend on individual contracts, roles and circumstances. Anyone directly affected should consult a qualified labour-law professional, chartered accountant or financial adviser before making decisions.