Microsoft has made thousands of layoffs over the past few years, and it's not done cutting jobs yet. After implementing a voluntary buyout program earlier this year, the company is now offering it to a reported 60,000 employees. That number represents over a quarter of the company, a telling indicator of just how much human labor Microsoft is looking to cut as it continues to go all in on AI.
"This is a time-limited, voluntary program that gives those who are eligible the opportunity to leave Microsoft with financial support and career planning resources," the company says in a message to employees, which it also published online.
Official communication from Microsoft does not detail how many employees will be eligible for the voluntary exit offer, but CNBC reports that "around 60,000 people" will receive the offer, or around 27% of the company. Certainly, not every eligible employee will accept the deal, but the numbers remain staggering.
Microsoft offered voluntary buyouts earlier in the year to an estimated 9,000 employees, and recently reported that "more than 30% of eligible employees chose to participate" in the program. Assuming the reported estimates were accurate, that means that around 3,000 employees took the buyouts.
That's on top of the 6,000 laid off in May 2025, 9,000 laid off in July 2025, and 4,800 laid off in July 2026. Xbox has been hit particularly hard in these layoffs, with 1,600 jobs in Microsoft's gaming division eliminated as part of the 2026 cuts, and another 1,600 layoffs currently in progress. More of those cuts are expected to be announced between now and January.
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