Ride-sharing service Lyft is reportedly set to cut at least 1,200 more jobs in an attempt to reduce costs. This move, which is the company’s second round of layoffs, could impact 30 percent or more of its 4,000+ employees.
People familiar with Lyft Inc.’s plans told the Wall Street Journal that the company is trying to slash 50 percent of its costs and that the decision to cut jobs — which reportedly does not include its drivers — was supposed to be announced after a board meeting next week.
Lyft’s new CEO, David Risher, reportedly told staff, “We need to bring our costs down to deliver affordable rides, compelling earnings for drivers, and profitable growth,” adding that those things “require us to reduce our size and restructure how we’re organized.”
“I own this decision, and understand that it comes at an enormous cost,” Risher added.
Lyft’s stock has fallen close to 70 percent over the past 12 months, while shares for its competitor, Uber, declined 4 percent over the same period.
The move to cut back on jobs comes after the company shed about 700 people late last year, having considered cutting even more employees than that.
In July, the ride-sharing service reportedly laid off another 60 employees — just under two percent of its workforce — and cut back on renting cars to customers.
Lyft is not the only tech company to slash jobs recently.
As Breitbart News reported late last year, food delivery service DoorDash laid off 1,250 employees in what the CEO said was part of a broader cost-cutting initiative. Around the same time, Amazon reduced its workforce by approximately 10,000 employees, the largest downsizing in the firm’s history.
In March, Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. also said it was cutting 10,000 jobs this year. The move came after the social media giant fired 11,000 employees late last year.
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