Ripple Effects of Tech Layoffs Will Sink In Soon

Be happy if you’re a tech worker with a job. More and more people in the industry are losing theirs. Today alone, The Information reported that online banking startup Chime was cutting 12% of its workforce and Bloomberg reported that Opendoor slashed 18% of its headcount. Those cuts follow other layoffs in recent days instituted by recruiting software provider Gem, Zillow and Oracle. Crypto finance firm Galaxy Digital is reportedly considering big cuts.  And any day now Elon Musk’s ax is expected to fall at Twitter.

Meanwhile, those big tech firms still hiring in the third quarter, most obviously Meta Platforms and Alphabet, are pulling back noticeably. Alphabet said last week, for instance, that its hires in the fourth quarter would be less than half those of the third quarter. Meta said it would hold its  headcount flat at current levels through 2023. And with the Fed raising interest rates sharply again today—and signaling that it’s not done—the economic pressures that are causing job cuts aren’t likely to let up anytime soon. All in all, the tech job market looks likely to stay weak for some time.