Job search giant Indeed is handing pink slips to roughly 1,000 workers, adding to the tech industry's unemployment woes. Following a similar move last year when the company reduced its workforce by 15%, the latest cuts hit the Austin community hard, according to a recent announcement by Indeed CEO Chris Hyams.
Struck by the sudden change, former Indeed software engineer Samuel Marino Jr., who had clocked in eight years at the company, expressed surprise at his layoff notice. "I was just naive in thinking that it wouldn’t happen just because the company had been around for a while and hasn’t resorted to this," Marino said, as per FOX 7 Austin. An attorney has since suggested that the employees affected by these layoffs may have grounds for a lawsuit, particularly if Indeed failed to comply with the WARN Act's requirement for a 60-day notice.
A former employee, now jobless due to the 2023 layoffs, shared the struggle of breaking back into the tight-knit tech job market. "The market is so competitive that without a referral, the odds of getting the opportunity to interview are very slim," said the unnamed individual in an interview with KXAN. With mass firings after a period of aggressive hiring, the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas reported a significant uptick in mass layoffs in Austin, with the tech sector being a major contributor.
"It's a tough time to be a technology worker right now. You face a real surplus in the labor market," said University of Texas Professor Steven Pedigo, shedding light on the current market condition. Katherine Cariño from Workforce Solutions Capital Area echoed these sentiments, indicating a tighter job market making it hard for tech industry workers to secure positions. "Even more joining constantly as people are graduating from school or getting their certifications," said Cariño, according to KXAN.
Amidst the turmoil, advice for the newly laid off includes networking for referrals and being vigilant when applying to new roles. Cariño suggests that tech workers might broaden their search and consider other sectors like healthcare or finance, as the tech industry's hiring rush slows and companies aim to "do more with less."
