Tech layoff announcements increase in September as industry slashes 165,925 jobs in 2026 so far
When it comes to layoffs, there’s a mix of good and bad news. The good news is, U.S. layoff announcements were down as a whole in September, according to the latest data. But when job cuts are broken down by industry, things weren’t as rosy for tech. In fact, tech company layoff announcements were 77% higher in September than the month before. Here’s what you need to know. Overall layoffs fell in…
In September, the tech industry experienced a 77% increase in layoff announcements compared to the previous month, according to a recent report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Overall, U.S. layoff announcements were down in September, but specific industries saw contrasting trends. While job cut announcements by U.S.-based employers fell by 18% from August to September, the tech sector saw a significant rise in layoffs.
In August, tech companies announced 6,103 layoffs, which increased to 10,799 in September, marking a 54% rise year-to-date. Major tech companies like Uber, Microsoft, and PayPal were among those announcing significant job cuts. Despite tech's notable increase in layoffs, other industries also saw a rise in job cuts during September, including food, non-profit, services, transportation, healthcare/products, and media & news.
The report indicates that artificial intelligence was not the primary reason for these layoffs, as it only accounted for 3,961 cuts, or about 9% of the total. Instead, "market and economic conditions" were the leading cause for job cuts, making up 20% of all layoffs.
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