Tech workers are facing a wave of uncertainty as layoffs ripple through the industry. Following recent cuts at Accenture and Microsoft, Oracle employees are now feeling the impact, with many confirming their job losses during a Zoom call. For those affected, the news isn’t just a headline rather it’s a sudden disruption to livelihoods, routines, and futures.
Following weeks of rumors swirling on LinkedIn and Reddit, Oracle has officially carried out the anticipated layoffs. The Times of India (TOI) confirmed the news after talking directly with employees affected by the cuts.
Oracle delivered the layoff notices under the pretense of “project updates,” leaving employees on edge every time they received an email with that subject line, as per TOI. With a workforce of around 30,000 in India, many have been living with the constant worry that they could be next.
“Jobs as we know them just don’t exist anymore,” one of the affected employees from Oracle’s database team said. “It was all over in less than 20 minutes – a Zoom invite, the manager on the call, and the HR representative telling me it wasn’t about my performance but purely business reasons.”
The affected employee further added, “my access was revoked very quickly. My RSUs were due to vest in Feb, but now I’ll lose them.”
Another employee who was let go shared the personal toll, saying, “my parents depend on me, and telling them was the hardest part.”
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A third employee, who received the layoff notice during a call meant for a “business update,” said he is still grappling with the update. “I’ve signed up for outplacement services. But it will take some time. The HR only outlined the severance we would receive. The entire process felt cold and came as a complete shock,” he revealed.
The majority of employees affected by the layoffs were offered severance packages, which varied based on factors such as seniority, location, and legal obligations. Severance amounts ranged from one month to a year’s pay, depending on the employee’s role and length of service with the company.
According to Data Centre Dynamics, Oracle is cutting jobs in its cloud division, affecting teams in both India and the United States. The layoffs are taking place within the Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) unit, which encompasses engineering, data center operations, and AI/ML functions.
Earlier in August, nearly 10% of Oracle’s workforce in India has been impacted by the recent layoffs, with some employees claiming that over 3,000 people were affected. The company had hired around 40,000 employees in India back in 2017.
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The layoff was officially attributing the move to “restructuring.” According to reports, the software development, cloud services, and technical support divisions bore the brunt of the reductions. Oracle India’s revenue rose to an estimated $2.45 billion (₹20,459 crore rupees) in the 2023-24 financial year, up from $2.19 billion (₹18,283 crore) the previous year, marking a 12% growth, according to data from intelligence platform Tofler. The company’s net profit for the same period stood at $169 million (₹1,410 crore), down from $195 million (₹1,626 crore) recorded in 2022-23.
According to outlet CRN, more than 300 employees in California and Washington have been affected by layoffs, even as Oracle and OpenAI announced a partnership to add 4.5 gigawatts of Stargate data center capacity in the U.S. The move is expected to generate new jobs, boost America’s reindustrialization efforts, and strengthen the country’s position in AI development.
The juxtaposition is striking: while Oracle is expanding projects that promise to create new jobs and advance U.S. AI capabilities, hundreds of employees are simultaneously losing their positions. The layoffs underscore the tension in the tech sector between rapid investment in emerging technologies and the human cost of corporate restructuring, leaving many workers uncertain about their future even as the company positions itself for long-term growth.