Amazon Layoffs Affect 2,300 Employees Across Washington State

Amazon is set to lay off 2,303 employees across Washington state, according to a recent state filing, as the company moves forward with a major corporate restructuring effort. The affected roles span software engineering, recruitment, human resources, product management, data engineering, and user experience design, among others. The details were first reported by the Puget Sound Business Journal and disclosed in a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) filing earlier this week.

While Amazon has not confirmed how many of the impacted employees are based in Bellevue, the city remains a key corporate hub for the tech giant. Amazon occupies a significant footprint in Downtown Bellevue, where it has steadily expanded office space in recent years and continues to anchor much of the city’s growing tech corridor.

The layoffs are part of a broader global reduction of roughly 14,000 corporate roles, first announced internally by Beth Galetti, Amazon’s Senior Vice President of People Experience and Technology. In a memo shared with employees, Galetti said the changes are designed to streamline operations, reduce management layers, and strengthen the company’s ability to move quickly in response to evolving customer needs.

Galetti emphasized that Amazon’s goal is to operate “like the world’s largest startup,” a philosophy centered on agility, innovation, and accountability. The restructuring aims to cut bureaucracy and focus resources on the company’s highest-priority projects—particularly in fast-moving areas like artificial intelligence and digital infrastructure.

For affected employees, Amazon says it will provide internal mobility options, severance pay, outplacement services, and continued health coverage. The company also noted it will continue hiring in key growth areas tied to its long-term strategy.

An Amazon spokesperson told Downtown Bellevue Network that the company is not releasing location-specific details, including how many of the impacted employees work at its Bellevue offices.

The announcement follows a series of shifts in Amazon’s workplace policies. In January 2025, the company ended its hybrid work model and began requiring employees to return to the office full-time—a move CEO Andy Jassy said would strengthen collaboration and culture.

Despite the reductions, Amazon continues to see strong business performance and remains deeply invested in Bellevue’s downtown core, where its offices are surrounded by new restaurants, retail, and residential developments that have grown alongside the city’s expanding tech workforce.

Galetti described artificial intelligence as “the most transformative technology since the Internet,” noting that the company’s ability to stay nimble and inventive will be critical in the years ahead.