Microsoft, the Redmond-based tech giant, is offering buyouts to 60,000 employees as it continues to invest heavily in data centers to support the AI boom. The move comes amid financial strain, according to CNBC. This is not the first time the company has reduced its workforce; last year, it laid off about 15,000 workers, including 3,200 in Washington, as reported by the Seattle Times. Then, in July, Microsoft cut another 4,800 jobs, roughly 2% of its global workforce.
The latest buyout offer includes a standard severance package and is available to eligible employees at the vice president level and below in the U.S., Canada, India, and the United Kingdom. This follows a voluntary retirement program the company offered to a smaller group of employees earlier this year. Eligible employees have until early December to decide whether to accept the offer, with those who accept exiting at the end of the year, according to Business Insider.