Google has expanded its voluntary employee exit program to five countries as it seeks to control costs while ramping up artificial intelligence investment. The company confirmed to Reuters that it began offering packages in June to some employees in Canada, France, Germany, Japan, and Switzerland. The move follows earlier voluntary exit programs in parts of the United States and the United Kingdom. Google Cloud and DeepMind staff have generally been excluded. In Switzerland, where Google employs about 5,000 people, the package offered one month’s salary for each year of service, capped at 12 months. Employees began leaving in August after applications closed in mid-July. The company has not disclosed how many people accepted the latest offers. The expansion comes shortly after Microsoft offered voluntary buyouts to roughly 60,000 employees. Alphabet continues to prioritize hiring in AI and cloud while reshaping other teams.
Google has expanded its voluntary employee exit program to five countries as it seeks to control costs while ramping up artificial intelligence investment. The company confirmed to Reuters that it began offering packages in June to some employees in Canada, France, Germany, Japan, and Switzerland. The move follows earlier voluntary exit programs in parts of the United States and the United Kingdom. Google Cloud and DeepMind staff have generally been excluded. In Switzerland, where Google employs about 5,000 people, the package offered one month’s salary for each year of service, capped at 12 months. Employees began leaving in August after applications closed in mid-July. The company has not disclosed how many people accepted the latest offers. The expansion comes shortly after Microsoft offered voluntary buyouts to roughly 60,000 employees. Alphabet continues to prioritize hiring in AI and cloud while reshaping other teams.