U.S. Firms Reduce White-Collar Headcounts

(MENAFN) Publicly traded U.S. companies have trimmed their white-collar headcounts by an average of 3.5% over the past three years, according to employment analytics firm Live Data Technologies. In a broader trend, one in five S&P 500 firms has downsized over the last decade.

Media described this pattern as more than a standard cost-cutting measure. “The cuts go beyond typical cost-trimming and speak to a broader shift in philosophy,” the outlet reported. “Adding talent, once a sign of surging sales and confidence in the future, now means leaders must be doing something wrong.”

Part of the shift is being driven by advancements in tools like generative AI, which enable companies to maintain or boost productivity with fewer people. But the motivations go deeper. From Amazon in Seattle to Bank of America in Charlotte, executives across industries are increasingly viewing large workforces as a liability, not an asset. “The message from many bosses: Anyone still on the payroll could be working harder,” media observed.

This approach marks a departure from the traditional boom-bust employment cycle, where layoffs happen during economic downturns and hiring resumes in recoveries. Instead, the recent cuts are happening amid record sales and profits, suggesting a more permanent rethinking of workforce structure and productivity expectations.

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