Microsoft lays off another 305 employees, this time closer to home

Hundreds of Redmond-based employees will be laid off by Microsoft.

Microsoft will lay off 305 Washington-based employees, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) filing this week. Employers must give notice before mass layoffs so affected workers can seek new jobs or prepare for the transition.

While this round affects less than 1% of Microsoft's workforce, it comes just weeks after the company laid off 3% of its staff. That earlier wave impacted 1,985 Washington-based employees. Around 6,000 total workers were affected by the May layoffs.

Microsoft had 228,000 employees as of last year, according to the company.

“We continue to implement organizational changes necessary to best position the company for success in a dynamic marketplace,” said a Microsoft spokesperson in a statement to The Seattle Times.

Mass layoffs are relatively common at Microsoft and other large tech companies, though they are often met with criticism.

Microsoft is one of the world's most valuable companies and is often the most valuable company on earth. The tech giant also beat expectations in FY25 Q3, reporting a net income of $25.8 billion.

With a workforce measured in hundreds of thousands, Microsoft is a complex company that adjusts its employee count regularly. Global economic trends and the rise of AI tools have also affected staffing around the world.