Amazon Cuts Jobs in Alexa and Kindle Divisions Amid Ongoing Layoffs

Last updated on June 18th, 2025 at 06:55 am

Amazon has announced additional job cuts in its book division that will impact less than 100 positions across teams, including Kindle and Goodreads. The cuts are intended to help the tech giant increase efficiencies and meet shifts in business priorities.

“While we work to improve the efficiency of our teams and programs and better align with our business roadmap, it is with a heavy heart that we share our decision to eliminate a small number of roles across the Books organization,” the spokesperson for Amazon said in a statement on Thursday.

The Seattle based firm has been carrying out layoffs in waves across various divisions with the most recent cuts affecting its Alexa powered devices and services unit, the Wondery podcast division and staff in the retail and communications divisions.

CEO Andy Jassy, who is heading the restructuring effort, is looking to peel layers of what he calls ‘excess bureaucracy’, including cutting managers to run a more agile organization.

While Amazon added about 4,000 employees in the first quarter of 2025 compared to the last quarter of 2024, job cuts have continued across multiple divisions. The tech industry saw total layoffs of more than 61,000 to date this year at 130 companies.

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Amazon’s stock finished up 0.3% on Thursday, even with all the layoffs in the books business. It is worth noting that Amazon’s stock is down 5.6% year to date.

The news about job cuts in Amazon’s books unit was first highlighted by Business Insider. Even with the layoffs, Amazon is trying to streamline operations in a changing tech and retail environment, even with great demand for its services.