14 DAY TRIAL // Yahoo is preparing for a rather significant round of layoffs. While the rumored figures vary, the number of people let go will be at least several hundred. The initial rumors said 20 percent of staff was to be let go. Yahoo denied the figure and later reports put it at 10 percent of employees only in the product divisions.
Yahoo has a little over 14,000 employees at this point, a number it has held for the past year. There are about 6,500 employees working on products, so at least 650 people are going to be looking for a job.
Yahoo has been struggling to turn around and start seeing some growth at the company again. That doesn't seem to be happening and, while the company is stable, it doesn't look in any better shape than it did a couple of years ago.
The company responded to the initial rumors of a 20 percent reduction in staff, citing the figure as misleading. Note that Yahoo is not denying the layoffs, rather, just the number.
“Yahoo! is always evaluating expenses to align with the company’s financial goals. However, a 20% reduction in Yahoo’s workforce across the board is misleading and inaccurate,” the company said.
Yahoo has undergone just one major restructuring under the rule of CEO Carol Bartz. 5 percent of the workforce was cut in 2009, about 675 people, though Yahoo has been hiring back since then. At the time, the company said there were to be no more big restructurings.
The news comes just as Google is offering a company-wide 10 percent raise and a $1,000 holiday bonus. The company is fighting an increasingly fierce battle with Facebook over employees.
There seems to be a shortage of software engineers in Silicon Valley, so the ones let go shouldn't have much trouble getting new jobs.