Apple has remained astray from its contemporaries amid widespread tech layoffs — until now.
The company is reportedly cutting a small number of roles within its corporate retail team, Bloomberg reported. The exact number of layoffs is not yet known, but sources told Bloomberg that Apple is approaching the layoffs as a “streamlining effort” and that the changes are intended to improve the upkeep of stores across the globe.
Affected employees were told that they have until Friday to reapply for other roles at the company and those who don’t take on a new position will be offered four months’ severance, according to Insider.
Related: Tech CEOs Are To Blame For Mass Layoffs
Although Amazon, Google, and Meta have recently laid off thousands of employees, Apple had remained resilient through cost-cutting measures (delaying bonuses, reducing travel) to avoid slashing jobs. Also, while many tech giants went on a hiring frenzy during the pandemic, Apple avoided overhiring — which may have contributed to its ability to avoid worker cuts.
Still, Apple’s reported layoffs are minuscule in comparison to other tech giants that have laid off workers in droves. It’s unclear whether this was a genuine streamlining effort, or if this is just the first batch of layoffs for the iPhone maker.
Last month, Bloomberg touched on the Apple difference amid tech layoffs, stating that if the company were to reduce its workforce, it would “either signal that they’d made a strategic blunder or the global economy is in even worse shape than people feared.”
However, it may be too soon to call — not only are the layoffs minimal, but at the time of writing, Apple stock is up nearly 33% year-to-date.