On Tuesday, March 31, at 6 AM EST, employees of tech company Oracle received an email informing them that, due to a “broader organizational change,” their roles had been cut with immediate effect. The company is planning to invest in AI development. This marks one of the largest layoffs in the history of technology companies.

The layoffs affected employees worldwide, particularly in the United States, India, Mexico, and Canada. According to The Independent, 12,000 of the affected employees were based in India alone.

As of May 2025, Oracle employed 162,000 people, indicating a workforce reduction of approximately 18%.

Business Insider published the full content of the message:

We are sharing some difficult news regarding your position.

After careful consideration of Oracle’s current business needs, we have made the decision to eliminate your role as part of a broader organizational change. As a result, today is your last working day.

We are grateful for your dedication, hard work, and the impact you have made during your time with us.

After signing your termination paperwork, you will be eligible to receive a severance package subject to the terms and conditions of the severance plan. You will receive an email from DocuSign to your Oracle email address with details on your severance and termination date.

Immediate Action Required

To receive important follow-up information, including FAQs and separation documents to help you through this transition, you must provide a personal email address.

Please click here to submit a personal email address immediately. If you make a submission error, please re-submit a new form. Please note: The personal email address will only be used for correspondence regarding separation-related information and severance agreements.

Access to your computer, email, voicemail, and files will be deactivated soon, and you will be unable to log into your computer. As a reminder, you are prohibited from downloading, copying, or retaining (including emailing yourself) any Oracle confidential information.

Thank you for your contributions to our organization. If you have additional questions, please reach out to the HR team via the Ask HR page or at (888) 404-2494.

Oracle Leadership

What caused the mass layoffs?

Oracle states that the layoffs are linked to organizational changes. However, it can be observed that the move is directly connected to the company’s plans to expand its AI capabilities.

The news follows earlier reporting by Bloomberg in March, which indicated that Oracle was considering cutting thousands of roles to finance a major expansion of its data center footprint and compete with leading AI companies.

According to Newsweek, analysts at TD Cowen had already predicted in January that Oracle could lay off up to 30,000 employees globally to address data center financing challenges. Their estimates suggested this could generate between $8 billion and $10 billion in additional free cash flow.

It is important to note that the tech giant reported exceptional results in its latest quarter, with revenue increasing by 22%. Oracle also reportedly increased its net income by 95%, reaching $6.13 billion last quarter.

According to The Independent, the company raised $50 billion in debt and equity in January but stated it does not plan to increase its debt load further in 2026.

However, in recent months, the company’s stock has declined significantly, falling by 25% since the beginning of the year - more than other major technology firms.

Despite these financial results, the company proceeded with mass layoffs, highlighting a long-term strategic bet on artificial intelligence.

Which teams were most affected?

The Economic Times reports that layoffs disproportionately impacted several business units.

Among the most affected teams:

  • RHS (Revenue and Health Sciences), where employees reported cuts of at least 30%, including 16 or more engineers in some units
  • SVOS (SaaS and Virtual Operations Services), which saw similar reductions of 30% or more
  • NetSuite’s India Development Centre (IDC), where layoffs affected employees across multiple levels, including project managers, individual contributors, and senior leadership

What happens next?

Employees will receive severance packages after signing separation documents.

According to posts on Reddit, some employees report that they will retain access to their vested stock through Fidelity, while access to production systems was revoked immediately.

Some employees also stated that their final working day would be April 3, followed by a “garden leave” period - meaning they remain formally employed but without active duties and with limited system access.

Additionally, according to The Times of India, Oracle installed tracking utilities on company-issued laptops, monitoring activity. Employees were reportedly warned not to copy any code or data before returning their devices.

Employee reactions

Senior Operations Manager at Oracle, Michael Shepherd, noted in a post on LinkedIn that affected employees were highly valuable and were not laid off due to performance issues:

“Let me be direct: this was not a performance action. The individuals affected were not let go because of anything they did or didn’t do. …To my colleagues who were impacted today - your worth is not defined by this moment. Your skills, your experience, and your reputation speak for themselves.”

He also addressed other tech companies, encouraging them to hire the affected employees and offering to provide recommendations:

"…To every tech company, cloud provider, defense contractor, and enterprise organization reading this - you just got handed a rare opportunity. The talent pool that hit the market today is not average. These are senior engineers, architects, operations leaders, program managers, and technical specialists with deep expertise in cloud infrastructure, government and sovereign cloud environments, and enterprise-scale systems. …If you are hiring - move fast. This caliber of talent does not stay available long. To anyone affected who needs a reference, a recommendation, or just someone in their corner - my inbox is open."

Layoff trends in big tech

Layoffs across major tech companies are no longer breaking news. In 2025, according to data from layoffs.fyi, which tracks job cuts in the tech industry, a total of 122,549 employees were laid off across 257 companies. That’s down from 152,922 employees across 551 companies in 2024. The companies responsible for the largest share of layoffs include Intel, Amazon, Tesla, Google, Meta, and Microsoft.

According to NerdWallet, around 40,000 employees have been laid off in 2026 so far across these companies. Many firms attribute these cuts to increased investment in AI research.

  • Amazon said on January 28 it plans to eliminate around 16,000 additional positions companywide, following a previous round of 14,000 job cuts in October.
  • In February, Block, headed by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, reduced its workforce by 4,000 employees, roughly 40% of its staff.
  • On March 11, Atlassian cut 1,600 jobs.
  • On March 16, Dell revealed it had trimmed its global workforce by 10%, impacting close to 11,000 employees.

The Blockchain Council notes that analytical reports often link these workforce reductions to efficiency gains driven by AI. However, some experts describe the phenomenon as “AI-washing.”

Overall, the industry is going through a complex phase: on one hand, AI is displacing certain roles; on the other, it is enhancing productivity for others. Meanwhile, companies continue to ramp up investment in artificial intelligence research - often at the cost of reducing headcount.