Apple has announced its first major round of layoffs since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to a recent filing with the state of California, the company is set to lay off 614 workers across eight different facilities in Santa Clara, with the changes taking effect on May 27.
The affected employees, who were officially notified of the cuts on March 28, held positions ranging from machine shop managers to hardware engineers and product design engineers.
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While Apple has not explicitly stated the reasons behind these layoffs, industry experts believe they may be connected to the company’s recent decision to cancel its long-running electric, self-driving car project, which was being developed by a team known as the Special Projects Group.
Apple chops hundreds of jobs in Silicon Valley in fresh tech layoffs https://t.co/vFRYf1vuNT
— East Bay Times (@EastBayTimes) April 5, 2024
Unlike many of its tech peers, Apple had managed to avoid significant downsizing during the pandemic, largely due to its more moderate growth compared to its rivals.
However, the cancellation of the electric car project, coupled with the fact that none of the affected facilities are located at Apple’s Cupertino headquarters, suggests that the company is now focusing on streamlining its operations and reallocating resources to core initiatives.
The layoffs at Apple also reflect the ongoing rejection by consumers of electric vehicles (EVs).
Despite the global push by the left to electrify everything consumers simply don’t want them.
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They prefer their gas cars over expensive electric vehicles that take hours to charge and lose power when it gets cold.
