The year has barely begun, yet the US job market layoffs 2026 are already casting a long shadow over workers across the country. In just a matter of weeks, some of the world’s largest corporations have announced sweeping job cuts, draining offices, thinning warehouses, and rattling confidence. Nearly six lakh jobs are expected to disappear, making this one of the most unsettling starts to a year for American workers in recent memory.
At the centre of the storm stands Amazon, joined closely by logistics giant UPS. Together, their decisions reflect a deeper shift that goes far beyond short-term economic pressure.
Layoffs 2026: Amazon’s Latest Layoffs Deepen Worker Anxiety
Amazon has confirmed the elimination of around 16,000 corporate roles in its latest round of layoffs. This follows an earlier reduction of about 14,000 jobs, bringing total job losses to nearly 30,000 worldwide. While the heaviest impact is being felt in the United States, teams in Canada and parts of Asia have also been affected.
The cuts span several corporate functions, including human resources, cloud services support, operations, and internal management roles. Even after posting solid financial results in 2025, Amazon has chosen to streamline aggressively, removing layers of management and accelerating its shift toward automation and artificial intelligence.
Employees in the US have been offered severance packages and limited time to explore internal transfers. Still, for many, the message is clear: roles once seen as stable are now vulnerable, increasingly replaced by software, algorithms, and automated workflows.
UPS Plans Massive Workforce Reduction
UPS is preparing for an equally dramatic overhaul. The delivery company has announced plans to cut up to 30,000 jobs in 2026, on top of the nearly 48,000 positions eliminated in 2025. The bulk of the cuts will fall on ground operations, including delivery routes, sorting centres, and warehouses.
As UPS reduces its reliance on Amazon deliveries and restructures its logistics network, fewer facilities will remain active and fewer workers will be needed. The company is redirecting its focus toward healthcare logistics and specialised freight, areas that rely more heavily on advanced systems and automation than large labour forces.
Labour unions, including the Teamsters, have raised alarms, arguing that workers are bearing the cost of a rapid technological transition with limited protections.
Layoffs 2026: Spread Across Industries
What makes the US job market layoffs of 2026 especially alarming is their reach. This is not a problem confined to tech giants or delivery firms. Job cuts are appearing across technology, banking, manufacturing, retail, and telecom sectors. Hiring freezes are becoming common, and once-busy recruitment pipelines have slowed to a trickle.
Notably, many of the companies cutting jobs are still profitable. This wave of layoffs is less about survival and more about transformation. Businesses are rethinking how much human labour they truly need as automation, AI tools, and leaner operating models reshape the workplace.
A Cold Reality for American Workers
The warning signs were already there. In 2025, layoffs across the US crossed the one-million mark, with some months ranking among the worst since the pandemic. Now, 2026 is showing little sign of relief.
Workers who lose their jobs are finding it harder to secure new roles quickly. Competition is intense, job openings are shrinking, and wages are under pressure. While the economy may not officially be in recession, the labour market feels unmistakably colder.
Skills tied to areas like cybersecurity, machine learning, data analysis, and advanced engineering are becoming more valuable. Yet retraining takes time, money, and access to resources many displaced workers simply don’t have.