U.S. Layoffs Reach Two-Year High as Big Tech Cut Thousands of Jobs in January

American companies announced last month the largest number of layoffs since September 2020, after tech firms cut positions at the second-highest pace on record as they prepare for a potential recession.
The layoffs included 102,943 workers in January, more than twice the amount in December and up 440 percent from the same month in 2022, according to employment analytics firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc., on Feb. 2.
The tech sector made up 41 percent of the planned layoffs, while those at retailers and financial companies also climbed from a year ago, the report stated.
The January layoffs were the highest total for that month since 2009, when 241,749 were announced and the most since September 2020, when 118,804 job cuts were reported.
“We’re now on the other side of the hiring frenzy of the pandemic years,” said Andrew Challenger, senior vice president of Challenger, in a statement.
“Companies are preparing for an economic slowdown, cutting workers and …