Lately, we’ve been seeing a lot of headlines about layoffs — and two big names keep popping up: UPS and Amazon. It’s easy to scroll past the news, to treat it like just another story in the never-ending cycle of corporate shakeups. But for the people affected, this isn’t just news. It’s real life.
These are warehouse workers, delivery drivers, tech employees, HR staff — thousands of people waking up one day to find out their job is gone. No warning, no time to prepare. One email, one meeting, and everything changes.
During the pandemic, both UPS and Amazon were lifelines. People were stuck at home, and these companies were moving everything — groceries, medicine, laptops, diapers. They hired like crazy to keep up. Work was intense. Long hours, nonstop shifts, but it felt important. Necessary.
Then the world started to open up again. People returned to stores. Spending patterns shifted. And just like that, the demand that once drove massive hiring has cooled down. Now those same companies are cutting back.
UPS is laying off workers because package volume is dropping. Amazon’s letting go of warehouse employees and also cutting corporate jobs — teams that were once seen as essential to growth. It’s not because the companies are failing; they’re just changing direction. Trying to “optimize,” become “leaner,” focus on automation.
But here’s what those words don’t capture: the stress of not knowing how you’ll pay your bills next month. The fear of starting over. The quiet grief of losing something that was a big part of your life.
We talk a lot about innovation and efficiency, but not enough about people. Not enough about what it feels like to be let go after years of hard work. To be replaced by a machine. Or a spreadsheet.
This isn’t just a UPS or Amazon thing. It’s happening everywhere — companies adjusting to new realities, cutting costs, leaning on tech instead of people. And sure, some of that is inevitable. But it shouldn’t be cold. It shouldn’t be careless.
The economy’s shifting. The world of work is changing. But we can’t lose sight of the fact that businesses are built by people — and when those people are let go, it should matter.
Not just in headlines, but in how we treat them afterward. In the support we offer. In the way we talk about work, not just as something we do, but something we rely on — for meaning, for stability, for dignity.
If we’re going to move forward, we have to make space for that conversation too.
