SLATE OF LAYOFFS AND HIRING FREEZES HIT THE TECH SECTOR

A number of major tech firms began large-scale layoffs this past week amidst a tightening economic environment. Ridesharing company Lyft announced it would let go of 13% of its corporate employees, citing economic conditions and expectations of increased insurance costs. Fintech companies Stripe and Dapper Labs announced labor cuts of 14% and 22%, respectively, that same day. Cuts extended to big tech firms as well, with Elon Musk-owned Twitter announcing a 50% reduction in workforce and Amazon freezing corporate hiring. This past week’s layoffs only add to a growing list (e.g. Meta, Coinbase) and come amid a trying year for the tech sector; the tech-heavy Nasdaq is down almost 34% YTD.