LinkedIn joins tech giants in layoff drive, cutting over 700 positions

As tech layoffs are in full swing, LinkedIn, the world's largest social media platform for professionals, has also announced it was shedding over 700 jobs and shutting down applications in China citing various reasons.

CEO Ryan Roslansky said in a letter to employees Monday that "the decision was made amid shifts in customer behaviour and slower revenue growth."

He said: "As we guide LinkedIn through this rapidly changing landscape, we are making changes to our Global Business Organisation and our China strategy that will result in a reduction of roles for 716 employees."

The platform has 20,000 employees, and has witnessed rising revenue each quarter last year, however, it has also come under the pressures mounted by a weakening global economic outlook.

Some of the other tech giants had announced to cut their jobs this year including Meta which said in March that it is going to lay off 10,000 additional employees after major job cuts last year.

Layoffs.fyi, who observes the layoffs, said: "In the past six months, more than 270,000 tech jobs globally have been cut."

The source of income of LinkedIn is via advertisement sales and charged subscriptions to recruiters and professionals.

Tech giants have contributed to a large number of recent layoffs, including 27,000 by Amazon making it the largest in its history. Alphabet has also laid off 12,000 people.

Layoffs.fyi also highlighted: "Before LinkedIn's announcement, 5,000 technology jobs had been eliminated in May alone."

Microsoft — which bought LinkedIn back in 2016 for around $26 billion — announced some 10,000 job cuts in recent months and took a $1.2 billion charge related to the layoffs.

CEO LinkedIn said: "As we plan for [the fiscal year of 2024], we're expecting the macro environment to remain challenging. We will continue to manage our expenses as we invest in strategic growth areas."

As part of the move, LinkedIn will cease its app from operating in China, by August 9.

"Despite our initial progress, InCareer faced fierce competition and a challenging macroeconomic climate, which ultimately led us to the decision of discontinuing the service," the company its users.

The California-based platform said: "It will retain some presence in China, including providing services for companies operating there to hire and train employees outside the country."

LinkedIn is the only Western-based social media platform operating in China as Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube had been barred from functioning for more than a decade. Google pulled itself out of China in 2010.