Amazon employees are navigating the stress of impending layoffs by sharing humor and memes in an internal Slack channel. Following reports that the company is poised to cut thousands of corporate roles, workers have turned to lighthearted banter as a coping mechanism. According to Business Insider, these layoffs could occur as soon as January 27, 2024, marking another significant reduction in workforce after approximately 14,000 jobs were eliminated in October.
With more than 26,000 employees participating in the Slack channel, the atmosphere has shifted from anxiety to camaraderie. Much of the humor references Amazon founder Jeff Bezos‘s well-known “two-pizza rule,” which suggests that no meeting should be so large that two pizzas cannot feed the entire group. As layoffs loom, workers are playfully applying this concept to illustrate the shrinking size of their teams.
One meme humorously depicted a single, thin slice of pizza with the caption, “how we feed two pizza teams.” Another image featured two branded pizza boxes from Amazon Web Services (AWS), with the phrase, “did someone say 2 pizza team?” This creative commentary highlights the anticipated cuts impacting the company’s cloud division.
Conversations in the Slack channel reflect a mix of concern and humor. One employee noted, “I don’t think I’ve ever been on a team that could be completely fed with just two reasonably sized pizzas until you were still hungry.” Others joked about the possibility of using larger pizza sizes, with one suggesting, “I was thinking more like Domino’s Large pizzas.”
The memes extend beyond pizza. One humorous post showcased a scene from the movie “The Shining,” with the caption “JANUARY 27TH,” portraying the anxiety surrounding the impending cuts. Another meme, using the “panik/kalm” template, joked about corporate jargon and the fear of being laid off, showing an error message about email failure, captioned, “Mail not working (have I become Nimble?!)” This refers to CEO Andy Jassy‘s remarks about job cuts aimed at maintaining agility.
One chilling checklist meme for January 27 included items such as “able to login,” “mail and Slack works,” and “no random HR meeting in calendar.” Another employee succinctly expressed the overall sentiment, stating, “I don’t know what will happen on 27 Jan and at this point I’m too afraid to ask.”
The trend of using humor to cope with job insecurity is not unique to Amazon. In 2023, employees at Google also engaged in similar meme-sharing activities following significant layoffs. This behavior illustrates how workers in the tech industry often seek solace in humor during uncertain times, reflecting a shared understanding of the pressures they face.
As Amazon prepares for another wave of layoffs, employees are finding ways to connect and support each other, even as the future remains uncertain. Their shared laughter serves as a reminder of the human spirit in the face of adversity, turning a challenging situation into an opportunity for solidarity and resilience.
