Walmart plans to lay off approximately 1,500 employees as part of an initiative to reduce complexity and streamline its corporate structure.
According to reports from The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg, the job cuts will mainly affect staff in Walmart’s global technology teams and U.S. corporate offices, including its Arkansas headquarters.
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In a memo titled “Building for the Future,” U.S. CEO John Furner and Global Tech Chief Suresh Kumar stated that the restructuring aims to speed up decision-making and foster faster innovation. The memo noted the tech division will be scaled down to better align with business goals and eliminate unnecessary layers.
The company emphasized that while roles are being eliminated, new positions will also be created to support Walmart’s long-term growth strategy.
This move reflects a broader trend among U.S. corporations to flatten hierarchies for improved efficiency. Tech giants like Amazon, Google, and Intel have recently trimmed middle-management layers to streamline operations. For instance, Amazon last year announced it would boost its worker-to-supervisor ratio by at least 15%.
The announcement comes shortly after Walmart disclosed plans to raise prices due to tariffs from the Trump administration. Walmart imports roughly one-third of its U.S. merchandise from countries such as China, Vietnam, and Mexico. Although some tariffs have been paused, the company’s CFO has called the remaining duties “too high,” leading to higher costs.
Despite the layoffs, Walmart posted a 2.5% revenue increase in its latest quarterly report, reaching $165.6 billion in sales compared to the previous year.
