Microsoft offers buyouts to 60,000 employees
The gist
Microsoft offered voluntary exit packages to about 60,000 employees, roughly a quarter of its 223,000-person workforce.
The tech giant is trimming staff while spending heavily on AI data centers.
How it unfolded
- May 2025Microsoft begins reducing its corporate workforce, first through waves of mass layoffs and later through buyout programs.
- 2026Microsoft lays off about 15,000 employees over several months, including about 3,200 Washington-based workers.
- Apr 2026Microsoft announces its first-ever voluntary retirement program, open to around 7% of U.S. employees.