Why Walmart is cutting scores of jobs, relocating employees to main offices

The US-based retailer Walmart Inc. is cutting some jobs and asking employees to move to its central offices in Arkansas or California. The initiative aims to consolidate the company's corporate footprint, according to a report by Bloomberg.

 

The retailer is asking some staff based in Hoboken, New Jersey, and other smaller offices to relocate to its headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas, or Sunnyvale, California, according to a memo seen by Bloomberg.

 

Walmart is shutting down its Charlotte, North Carolina office and cutting corporate positions as part of the process, according to an internal memo. A source familiar with the matter stated that hundreds of roles are being eliminated.

 

 

Last year, Walmart instructed employees in Dallas, Atlanta, and Toronto to relocate to larger hubs, with most transitioning to the company's headquarters in Bentonville.

 

“We are making these changes to put key capabilities together, encouraging speed and shared understanding,” Donna Morris, chief people officer at Walmart, wrote in the memo.

 

The company, which declined to comment, has begun opening its Bentonville campus and plans to launch new office spaces in Sunnyvale and Bellevue, Washington, later this year.  ALSO READ: US jobless claims rise to 219,000, but layoffs remain relatively low

 

Turbulence in the global job market

 

In 2024, almost every major sector experienced turbulence, following the global trend of job cuts amid cost-cutting measures and the replacement of many positions with advanced technology, particularly artificial intelligence (AI).

 

In the technology sector alone, major tech giants laid off thousands of employees worldwide to reduce costs. For example, Intel announced plans to reduce its workforce by approximately 15,000 employees by 2025, accounting for over 15 per cent of its global staff. Dell reduced its global workforce by about 6,000 jobs in 2024, following a previous reduction of approximately 13,000 positions the year before.

 

Furthermore, Sony announced on 28 February 2024 that it would lay off about 900 employees from its PlayStation division, amounting to approximately 8 per cent of its global workforce.

 

The automotive industry also followed the same trend globally. For instance, Ford planned to cut nearly 4,000 jobs in Europe over a three-year period, representing about 14 per cent of its regional workforce. Nissan Motor planned to lay off or transfer about 1,000 jobs in Thailand as it reduced production in Southeast Asia.

 

Other major sectors, such as aviation, financial services, manufacturing, and other industries, also witnessed large-scale layoffs, driven primarily by cost-cutting initiatives and rapidly advancing technology.

 

(With inputs from Bloomberg)