Amazon laid off 30,000 workers while CEO Andy Jassy got a 30% pay bump

[midian182]

In brief: If there's one thing likely to make the 30,000 people Amazon has laid off since October feel even worse, it's finding out that CEO Andy Jassy saw his total compensation increase to $2.1 million last year, rising about 30% compared to 2024.

Amazon published its annual proxy statement yesterday, revealing Jassy's compensation for last year.

Jassy earned a base salary of $365,000 in 2025, while his business travel and security expenses reached $1.7 million, bringing the total to around $2.1 million.

Jassy also had $43 million in stock awards that vested in 2025, as well as $242 million in restricted stock that had not vested as of December 31.

The Amazon boss' compensation increased compared to 2024. His base salary was the same that year, but his security and travel expenses were $1.1 million, taking the total to almost $1.6 million. He also had more than $274 million in restricted Amazon stock at the end of 2024.

During his first year as CEO in 2021, Jassy received a stock award from Amazon – the last time he was awarded one – bringing his annual compensation to more than $200 million.

Amazon's share price over the last 12 months

A CEO being paid hundreds or thousands of times more than those who work for them isn't something new, of course. But it's an especially bitter to pill to swallow at Amazon.

The tech giant has cut at least 30,400 jobs since January 1, 2025, about 10% of the company's white-collar workforce. Even Amazon's robotics unit, which many believe will reduce the need for warehouse workers, has seen layoffs.

Much of the focus around these cuts has fallen on AI. Amazon has partly tied the reductions to AI-driven efficiency gains, though it has also framed them as part of a broader push to remove layers, reduce bureaucracy, and streamline the business.

While Jassy's compensation package is eye-watering by any normal standard, it reflects how most tech CEOs are paid. Salary is usually the smallest part of the package, while vested shares and long-term stock grants account for the overwhelming majority of their wealth. By that standard, Jassy is hardly an outlier, even if the numbers remain staggering.

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Amazon laid off 30,000 workers while CEO Andy Jassy got a 30% pay bump

 

[Squid Surprise]

Well, Amazon has added about a trillion dollars to their market cap over the last 2 years… I’d wager they figure their CEO is worth it…

 

[torvuswalds]

Mangez les riches.

 

[RedGuard]

Hypocrites.

 

[R00sT3R]

One day these CEOs will discover that no gated mansion or bunker will keep out those with nothing left to lose, whilst they get dragged out to the nearest tree....

 

[MaestroIT]

AI can replace 30000 workers, but obviously cannot replace 1 CEO

 

[antiproduct]

Wish they would have an 80% tax bracket specifically for CEOs. Oh you got this huge pay raise at the cost of workers jobs? Well, now you get to pay for their unemployment too.

 

[NumberNine]

Smart people who are born rich and yet still work for a living typically die rich.

 

[Squid Surprise]

Wish they would have an 80% tax bracket specifically for CEOs. Oh you got this huge pay raise at the cost of workers jobs? Well, now you get to pay for their unemployment too.

He didn’t get the pay raise at the cost of anyone’s salaries… Amazon has added a trillion dollars to their market cap in the last 2 years… they clearly believe their CEO had something to do with this… and they believe those 30k workers they laid off didn’t… right or wrong, as a company, they have that right.

 

[Hexic]

AI can replace 30000 workers, but obviously cannot replace 1 CEO

And it never will be able to. AI can’t have the cognizance that a human CEO can. It can parse all the data in the world, but the human element will always make this strategic position a human one.

 

[Hexic]

Wish they would have an 80% tax bracket specifically for CEOs. Oh you got this huge pay raise at the cost of workers jobs? Well, now you get to pay for their unemployment too.

At 80%, this would heavily disincentivize enough potential industry CEOs that it could actually stunt innovation and growth from future leaders.

 

[JimF1]

The Greed in this world is just getting worse by the minute. What a shame.

 

[JMGuy]

Yeah, layoffs are brutal—I’ve been through it, and it sucks. But this isn’t ever about fairness at the individual level; it’s about the scale of responsibility and results.

CEO pay follows the results of the responsibility. A company the size of Amazon is at a scale most can’t even conceptualize. It isn’t remotely comparable to any other role and one bad call could wipe out tens of thousands of jobs or worse.

If the company is creating massive value and growing, it makes absolute sense that the person steering it is rewarded accordingly. This happens at every scale of business and it is completely appropriate.

Frankly, the outrage and revenge fantasies just expose how little understanding is actually in the room. Calling it hypocrisy just ignores how performance-based compensation actually works.

 

[JimF1]

Bezos' is working toward getting his second custom made Yacht.

 

[Melkor Unlimited]

AI can replace 30000 workers, but obviously cannot replace 1 CEO

Beacause AI does not play golf with movers & shakers.

 

[Melkor Unlimited]

antiproduct said
Wish they would have an 80% tax bracket specifically for CEOs. Oh you got this huge pay raise at the cost of workers jobs? Well, now you get to pay for their unemployment too.

At 80%, this would heavily disincentivize enough potential industry CEOs that it could actually stunt innovation and growth from future leaders.

Are you trying to say 50 years ago, or even 20 years ago, there was NO innovation?

 

[brucek]

I'm more interested in the details of why they thought they no longer needed those 30,000 workers, which of course we'll never get, but that's where the story is. That's a change to 2% of its workforce although I have no idea if it was evenly spread around or they closed a specific line of business, etc.

This trying to bait a class war thing is BS. Even assuming all 30,000 workers were among the lowest paid workers, that's probably something like $1,500,000,000 in costs. There was never a choice between paying that bill or being able to afford a $500,000 raise for the CEO.

The article also does not discuss Amazon's remaining 1.3 million employees, many of whom probably also received raises, bonuses, or stock compensation. (I have no specific information on that, just guessing they are still in business and still need to retain the people they still need.)

 

[Str8Shot]

One day these CEOs will discover that no gated mansion or bunker will keep out those with nothing left to lose, whilst they get dragged out to the nearest tree....

Let’s hope you’re right, because at the current trend, nobody is getting off social to wake up to what’s going on in the world and doing something about it. Zero outrage, just “posts” online.

 

[Str8Shot]

That’s cute. My purchases with Amazon for the past 18 months are down about 50% from previous. I’ve started to purchase more locally as a deliberate choice. Amazon has turned into a Chinese garbage outlet. What’s keeping them afloat is their relatively good return policy.

Only our own choices can prevent these companies from growing into monopolies on our business. That, and the fact you can still pay cash locally. If you don’t want the NWO and technocracy, this is the way forward: local, cash, anonymous, with real human interactions

 

[Squid Surprise]

One day these CEOs will discover that no gated mansion or bunker will keep out those with nothing left to lose, whilst they get dragged out to the nearest tree....

Let’s hope you’re right, because at the current trend, nobody is getting off social to wake up to what’s going on in the world and doing something about it. Zero outrage, just “posts” online.

Yeah… society would be SO much better if we had raging mobs going around murdering CEOs…

Maybe do some critical thinking before you post?

 

[Che Cazzo]

Yeah… society would be SO much better if we had raging mobs going around murdering CEOs…

Maybe do some critical thinking before you post?

Not even close. But let me fix it for you:

Yeah… society would be SO much better if we didn't have raging mobs of shills going around praising CEOs and their obscene salaries as if they are not trillionaires already - …while none of them sheds a tear about the suddenly jobless 30,000 workers and their families in this brutal Trumpist economy.

Maybe do some REALLY critical thinking before you post?

There. You're welcome!!

 

[Squid Surprise]

Not even close. But let me fix it for you:

Yeah… society would be SO much better if we didn't have raging mobs of shills going around praising CEOs and their obscene salaries as if they are not trillionaires already - …while none of them sheds a tear about the suddenly jobless 30,000 workers and their families in this brutal Trumpist economy.

Maybe do some REALLY critical thinking before you post?

There. You're welcome!!

lol - so glad you at least did some thinking… we live in a capitalist society - it’s not a perfect system, but it’s better than the alternatives…

All people are NOT created equal - while virtually ANYONE (including AI or robots) can (and will) take the place of the 30,000 workers who lost their jobs, it’s a lot harder to replace a SUCCESSFUL CEO.

The consequences of a bad CEO can decrease a company’s net worth, cost employees their jobs, and - in extreme cases - even destroy the entire company.

Amazon’s worth a few trillion… and employs over 1.5 million people. If it went under, the consequences would be drastic.

It DOES suck when people lose their jobs - most will find new ones… if Amazon were to let Jassy go, another company would hire him within weeks…

 

[Theinsanegamer]

Let’s hope you’re right, because at the current trend, nobody is getting off social to wake up to what’s going on in the world and doing something about it. Zero outrage, just “posts” online.

Or, just maybe, life is just continuing on as normal for most people?

I'm more interested in the details of why they thought they no longer needed those 30,000 workers, which of course we'll never get, but that's where the story is. That's a change to 2% of its workforce although I have no idea if it was evenly spread around or they closed a specific line of business, etc.

This trying to bait a class war thing is BS. Even assuming all 30,000 workers were among the lowest paid workers, that's probably something like $1,500,000,000 in costs. There was never a choice between paying that bill or being able to afford a $500,000 raise for the CEO.

The article also does not discuss Amazon's remaining 1.3 million employees, many of whom probably also received raises, bonuses, or stock compensation. (I have no specific information on that, just guessing they are still in business and still need to retain the people they still need.)

It's always a rage bait. Like the people who cry about wal mart's CEO getting a raise without realizing that a $1 an hour raise would cost billions a year given how many people they employ.

Most of those 30k employees are likely overhired HR positions, recruitment, social media managers, ece, all of whom are pure fat jobs and the first thing to go when budgets need cut. Amazon only employed 798k people before Red Lung so even after these layoffs they are still significantly larger then they were 5 years ago.

Not even close. But let me fix it for you:

Yeah… society would be SO much better if we didn't have raging mobs of shills going around praising CEOs and their obscene salaries as if they are not trillionaires already - …while none of them sheds a tear about the suddenly jobless 30,000 workers and their families in this brutal Trumpist economy.

Maybe do some REALLY critical thinking before you post?

There. You're welcome!!

Demanding violence because some people are more successful than you is not a winning strategy. At best it gives you the brutalist USSR, at worst totally dysfunctional crab in a bucket societies like the congo or somalia.

 

[pnntmp]

30,000 is less than 2% of Amazon's workforce. Given the extreme growth during Covid, that scaling back to more reasonable levels is much smaller than expected.

Since when are business expenses a part of the salary ???

 

[havok585]

Not even close. But let me fix it for you:

Yeah… society would be SO much better if we didn't have raging mobs of shills going around praising CEOs and their obscene salaries as if they are not trillionaires already - …while none of them sheds a tear about the suddenly jobless 30,000 workers and their families in this brutal Trumpist economy.

Maybe do some REALLY critical thinking before you post?

There. You're welcome!!

your TDS condition is showing