Amazon Plans 1,200 Corporate Job Cuts in Spain Amid Global Restructuring

Amazon Announces Significant Corporate Layoffs in Spain

E-commerce giant Amazon has announced plans to lay off up to 1,200 corporate office workers in its Madrid and Barcelona locations. This decision is part of a broader global restructuring effort by the company, which aims to reduce its worldwide corporate workforce by 14,000 jobs. The announcement has sparked criticism from the Spanish government.

Details of the Redundancy Process

The job cuts in Spain will specifically impact corporate employees across two of Amazon's subsidiaries: Amazon Digital Spain, headquartered in Madrid, and Amazon Spain Services, with offices in Barcelona. While Amazon employs approximately 28,000 people across Spain, these layoffs are concentrated solely on corporate roles and are not expected to affect the company's logistics operations or other work centers within the country. The 1,200 planned redundancies represent about 4.28 percent of Amazon's total workforce in Spain.

Global Strategy and AI Investment Cited as Reasons

Amazon's decision to reduce its workforce is framed as a strategic move to enhance efficiency, reduce bureaucracy, eliminate hierarchical layers, and reallocate resources towards key investment areas, particularly artificial intelligence (AI). Beth Galetti, Amazon's Senior Vice President of People Experience and Technology, communicated that these reductions are a continuation of efforts to 'further strengthen' the company. CEO Andy Jassy had previously indicated in June 2025 that AI would be a 'substantial catalyst' in reshaping Amazon's future workforce, potentially reducing the total corporate workforce as the company gains efficiency from extensive AI use. This round of layoffs follows previous significant cuts in 2023, which saw Amazon reduce its workforce by 27,000 employees globally.

Government Criticism Amid Strong Financial Performance

The announcement has been met with strong disapproval from the Spanish government. Yolanda Diaz, Spain's Minister of Labour, publicly criticized Amazon, describing the situation as an 'example of labour injustice.' Diaz stated, 'A company that has millionaire profits and that leaves its workers stranded is a model of shame.' This criticism comes despite Amazon reporting robust financial results for the third quarter of 2025, achieving a net profit of $21.18 billion, a 38.2 percent improvement over the previous year, with quarterly sales reaching $180.2 billion.