#layoffs

It's posted in the WARN NOTICE that Cigna was going to do lay offs on the 29th yesterday. The next date is May 20th what a Mother's day gift!!!!!

#AI-mad Verizon to continue with cuts after CEO's jobs warning
Verizon CEO Dan Schulman has now completed the 13,000 layoffs he promised last November, but more could lie ahead. [ Lightreading 📰].

Iain Morris,International Editor,Light Reading — April 30, 2026

Company bosses occasionally praise their employees in public and note the importance of talent. That doesn't quite ring true when they are cutting thousands of jobs, as many are, which might partly explain why lauding AI is now much more fashionable. Attributing job cuts to the solid efforts of the new AI recruit, which bosses have anthropomorphized by saying it is an "agent" or does "reasoning," is even trendier.

It's quite a turnaround from a few years ago, when linking #automation, let alone AI, to job losses was as taboo as nudity in the workplace. No, no, managers frowned, new tech will merely liberate workers from drudgery and provide time for more satisfying pursuits. This was obviously before generative #AI (GenAI) threatened to liberate content creators from creating content so they could spend more time cleaning laptop screens or making tea – until GenAI turned out to be a duff substitute prone to mendacity.

Regardless, investors, if not employees, like the sound of a super-lean and highly profitable company run by AI rather than people. Fearful of missing out on a new tech bonanza, authorities have stopped worrying about the risks and jumped. Suddenly, the hallucinating software developed by a strange cult of effective altruists is being foisted on the world's population by governments and companies of all types. No longer taboo, the linkage between #AI and #joblessness has been normalized in that process.

Into this maelstrom stepped Dan Schulman on October 6 last year, when he was appointed CEO of Verizon, one of the biggest telecom operators in the US (and, therefore, the world). It has been a major US employer, with more than 180,000 members of staff back in 2012. Yet by the time Schulman joined, just 100,000 were left after multiple rounds of restructuring and #layoffs.

Schulman's Verizon shrank even more rapidly during his first three months in charge and already seems to feature more agents than The Matrix. It's "where we have agent-building capabilities," was how he described part of Verizon's AI tech stack to equity analysts on the company's earnings call this week. Another layer "is where we deploy agents," he continued. The cost cutting looks set to go on.

'Never send a human to do a machine's job'

In the last decade, most of the job losses at #Verizon have had very little to do with AI and almost nothing to do with its generative version, which did not even exist until around three-and-a-half years ago, when the company was already down to fewer than 120,000 employees. Even so, another 30,000 had disappeared by the end of last year, including about 10,000 since Schulman took over. In November, he had warned staff of plans to cut 13,000 jobs. All those now seem to have been cut. "We're running leaner with the 13,000 reduction behind us," said Tony Skiadas, Verizon's CFO, on the earnings call.

https://www.lightreading.com/ai-machine-learning/ai-mad-verizon-to-continue-with-cuts-after-ceo-s-jobs-warning

Up to 10 people have been laid off with more planed

A lawsuit has been filed against Wren Kitchens. This legal action follows recent mass layoffs. The company's job cuts were reportedly abrupt. The lawsuit addresses these sudden terminations. Affected employees were located in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

https://www.audacy.com/wilknews/news/local/lawsuit-filed-against-wren-kitchens-over-abrupt-mass-layoffs-in-nepa

McDonald's laid off employees across Global Tech. Some individual layoffs were done in advance of the group layoffs to artificially keep the total numbers down.

Saks Global is reducing its corporate headquarters workforce. The company is cutting 16 percent of these positions. This action impacts approximately 640 workers. These layoffs reflect an optimized operational footprint. Saks Global filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy earlier this year.

New York, New York

https://wwd.com/business-news/retail/saks-global-sets-more-layoffs-at-corporate-office-1238935066/

Who heard about this

Albertsons is undertaking a new restructuring. Two retail locations in Texas ceased operations. This impacted 138 individuals. A major acquisition attempt involving Kroger collapsed. The company now faces intense competition alone.

Texas

https://internationalsupermarketnews.com/albertsons-at-a-crossroads-store-closures-layoffs-and-the-aftermath-of-a-failed-merger/

Infosys CEO Salil Parekh confirmed the company has no plans for layoffs. He stated Infosys has not conducted any layoffs in the past year. Parekh believes artificial intelligence expands work opportunities rather than reducing them. The company intends to hire approximately 20,000 fresh graduates in 2026. Infosys is also actively reskilling its engineers to work with AI-driven tools.

https://www.peoplematters.in/news/ai-and-emerging-tech/no-layoffs-at-infosys-as-ceo-says-ai-is-expanding-work-report-49481

Baptist Health Fort Smith announced significant service reductions. These changes specifically impact inpatient care offerings. The hospital is also implementing staff layoffs. Officials confirmed the facility will not close entirely. Instead, it will operate with a more limited scope of services.

Fort Smith

https://www.5newsonline.com/video/news/health/baptist-health-fort-smith-announces-inpatient-service-cuts-layoffs/527-be08743e-61cb-41ea-a62b-920573f2734c

AI and shifting supervisory roles to lower cost regions like India can significantly reduce operating expenses in call centers. AI tools handle routine inquiries, automate quality monitoring, and assist agents in real time, which cuts down on staffing needs and boosts efficiency. At the same time, outsourcing supervisor roles to India lowers salary and overhead costs while still maintaining 24/7 coverage and scalability. Together, this combination allows companies to streamline operations, improve response times, and maintain service quality at a fraction of the traditional cost.

"The company faces challenges with limited IT resources and staffing shortages in its vertical markets."
Uhhhhh, well maybe quit laying off the IT staff and hiring incompetent Offshore folks.

"The company is still in the early stages of broader commercialization of its AI offerings, which may delay potential revenue growth."
Translation. I know we SAID we an AI company, but we've never really sold AI before. (Forget about the fact that we still havent created anything AI, unless you count ChatGPT making up our press releases)

Here is a new 41 minutes interview with Dan Schuman Interview posted 4 Hours ago on YouTube channel Semafor of you are interested. Link is at the bottom.

“If somebody’s going to punch me, I’m going to punch back,” Verizon CEO Dan Schulman says in this episode of The CEO Signal.

Schulman, who came out of retirement six months ago to lead the $200 billion telecoms company, reveals that he initially turned the job down — twice. But his mandate is blunt: stop losing customers to its rivals, regain Verizon’s “swagger,” and move it from a defensive posture to one that is “playing to win.”

That reset has come with hard choices. Schulman discusses Verizon’s major restructuring, why he chose to announce 13,000 job cuts all at once rather than “bleed it out over multiple quarters,” and why he thinks CEOs have responsibilities to employees who are leaving as well as those who remain.
Schulman describes the job of leadership as defining reality while inspiring hope — even when the reality is uncomfortable.

Schulman also looks ahead to the convergence of AI, quantum computing and robotics, and argues that CEOs need to be open-minded, humble and fast-moving. “A quick decision that is wrong and you self-correct,” he says, “is way better than spending months creating the perfect decision.”
About the show

The CEO Signal is Semafor’s interview platform for conversations with the global CEOs whose decisions are shaping the future of the new world economy. Hosted by Penny Pritzker and Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson, the show explores the moments of judgment that define leadership.

Penny Pritzker is the founder and chairman of PSP Partners and served as U.S. Secretary of Commerce from 2013 to 2017.

Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson is CEO Editor at Semafor and a former Financial Times journalist who has spent decades covering global companies and corporate leadership.

https://youtu.be/rIy0WpUHm_w

They just laid off a whole team of US base virtual customer service representative yesterday, April 29, 2026

Hearing of layoffs across the company from SVPs, VPs, Directors to the Operations level

Unpopular opinion: many of the people who were let go weren’t adding enough value to justify their roles. If we’re being honest, there’s probably more inefficiency still left in the system.

Anyone know about this? I saw it on nj.com

40 let go last week. A couple were people that were the only person that worked on their particular project in their capacity. I wish them well. It's basically monthly now.

Doesn’t seem like any layoffs are taking place today????

Did you anyone receive them email that was sent out this morning about Cigna getting rid of IFP plans starting in 2027? What does this mean for our jobs? If Cigna is no longer offering IFP PLANS starting 2027, does this mean employees in that department will also be fired? I’m just trying to understand all of this.

If you are placed on 60 day no work notice. Do you accumulate PTO during that time to be paid out on or catch up to PTO used but not yet accrued? Thanks!

Workday IT support and legal have reviewed everything. They are now testing the data loads into workday. Pipeline is built out and the final kinks are being worked out now. Its been 6 months since the last one, most leaders are worried, on high alert, and ready for movement to get going next week. Lists were made a couple months ago based on the scripting and code prompts being run in workday for testing the last 2-3 weeks. If your manager doesn't think this is true they just have their head in the sand. Q1 results good or bad would change stop this from happening, this is Dan's plan "cut cut cut and cut so more". We took on billions in new debt, cutting employees is the only way to pay that back. Expect another one next quarter before the stock grant is given in October.

hi,
Hoping anyone impacted today might find this thread and post whatever info they can for the rest of us anxious souls.
Good luck everyone! ❤️

Nike has just posted multiple openings at IRC to backfill the roles that were laid off.
So, in other words, it was not a layoff, but simply outsourcing.

Over hiring in past 5 years
AI is coming
Space is limited
100% in office is coming
RIF coming to go back to headcount 65~70K

Seems to be no rhyme or reason for who was placed where and the decisions that were made. What the Fu*k?

Anyone from the previous round willing to share their age and salary grade? Curious if the same age groups or grades are being targeted in the cuts rumored for today.

I believe we'll only be safe come Monday.

How’s it going in the stores without their beauty merchandisers?! Are the cosmetics associates doing the job? Visual captain?! Is stuff getting done?! Why would anyone think it was a great idea to cut them? If anything there should be a full time and a part time at every store! They’re important because they do a lot in 40 hours a week! Mind you, the pay should align better too.

A beverage distribution company reached an agreement to sell its Texas operations. This sale could result in 90 local job losses. The potential layoffs are expected in June. Texas law requires 60 days' notice before potential mass layoffs. This notice protects workers and their families.

https://www.caller.com/story/money/business/local/2026/04/29/corpus-christi-layoffs-republic-national-distributing-company/89862541007/

North Thurston Public Schools board paused proposed layoffs. This decision followed significant public outcry at a recent meeting. The district faced a $10 million budget deficit. Proposed cuts included mental health specialists and physical therapists. Enrollment decline and rising expenses contributed to the financial shortfall.

Lacey, Washington

https://www.theolympian.com/news/local/article315569243.html

Cognizant announced Project Leap, a restructuring program costing up to $320 million. The company allocated up to $270 million for employee-related expenses, including severance. This plan aims to realign operations for an AI-driven environment. Cognizant expects to achieve $200 million to $300 million in savings by 2026. The company also plans to hire over 20,000 fresh graduates in 2026.

https://www.peoplematters.in/news/business/cognizant-sets-aside-dollar270-million-for-layoffs-while-launching-global-reset-plan-49482

FreshRealm, a large-scale fresh food production company, has filed for bankruptcy. This action will result in significant job losses. The company partners with Blue Apron. More than 200 employees are affected by these layoffs. The job cuts will occur at its Tracy production plant.

Tracy, California

https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/video/more-than-200-layoffs-loom-at-tracy-fresh-food-production-plant/

Marsden Services is laying off 106 employees at its Louisville facility. The company's facility services warehouse permanently ceased operations. Layoffs are scheduled to begin on May 10. This closure resulted from a client terminating their contract. Affected employees are not represented by a union and do not have bumping rights.

Louisville, Kentucky

https://www.courier-journal.com/story/money/companies/2026/04/29/marsden-services-to-close-louisville-warehouse/89864202007/

New Jersey City University (NJCU) recently notified employees about potential layoffs or demotions. These notices followed the Middle States Commission on Higher Education's approval of a merger with Kean University. The university aims to address a projected $25-$30 million budget gap. This is a second wave of reductions, after 151 employees were cut in February. NJCU will become Kean-Jersey City University on July 1.

Jersey City, New Jersey

https://jerseyvindicator.org/2026/04/29/new-jersey-city-university-continues-layoffs-ahead-of-merger-with-kean-university/

Anyone have any info on what KSC clinics are closing for good? I know our path of growth was too aggressive, but didn’t think closing clinics was the solution. I always assumed they would just do a hiring freeze instead of laying off WellMed employees they just onboarded within the last 6 months….Good luck to anyone who gets cut today. It is tough out there.

Thoughts? One more Wave? Two? All done.

Almost all folks in my circle think it's at least one.