Google Buyouts Offered Amid Tech Industry Layoffs
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Google has extended a new round of buyouts to its U.S. employees across several core divisions, including its search, ads, and commerce units.
The initiative is part of Google's effort to manage headcount following major staff reductions last year. Affected teams also include central engineering, marketing, research, and communications.
Newsweek has contacted Google via email for comment.
Why It Matters
The announcement comes during a surge in technology sector layoffs in Silicon Valley, where companies continue to adjust workforce levels due to economic pressure and rising investment in artificial intelligence. These developments show how volatile tech employment is right now, and how the leading tech companies are implementing structural and market changes.
What To Know
Google introduced the buyout, named a Voluntary Exit Program, in response to ongoing cost-cutting and restructuring goals.
The program is open to select U.S.-based employees in the Knowledge and Information unit (which includes search, ads, and commerce), central engineering, marketing, research, and communications, as outlined in an internal memo reported by CNBC.
Employees choosing the buyout will receive a severance package, with Google leadership describing the policy as "a supportive exit for those not aligned with the company's strategy."
Google also adjusted its remote work policy, requiring affected remote employees living within 50 miles of a Google office to return for a hybrid work schedule. A spokesperson for Google told Newsweek that this was not a company-wide policy and was team-specific.
A Google corporate logo hangs above the entrance of their St. John's Terminal office on May 19, 2025, in New York City.
A Google corporate logo hangs above the entrance of their St. John's Terminal office on May 19, 2025, in New York City.
Getty Images
The buyouts at Google mirror staff reductions across the technology sector. LinkedIn, Chegg, and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HP) collectively notified California authorities of over 400 job cuts in May 2025.
Google previously laid off 12,000 employees in early 2023, which made up around 6 percent of its global workforce.
Recent buyouts have also targeted divisions such as hardware, human resources, legal, and finance. The company has described buyouts as a more humane alternative to layoffs, following staff pushback and declining morale last year.
The organization is also realigning its training programs to focus on essential skills related to artificial intelligence.
What People Are Saying
Courtenay Mencini, a Google spokesperson, told Newsweek: "Earlier this year, some of our teams introduced a voluntary exit program with severance for U.S.-based Googlers, and several more are now offering the program to support our important work ahead.
"A number of teams are also asking remote employees who live near an office to return to a hybrid work schedule in order to bring folks more together in-person."
What Happens Next
Google will continue implementing buyouts through designated enrollment periods.
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