Amazon is shutting down its charity platform as part of the company’s recent cost-cutting efforts.
The AmazonSmile program that allows customers to donate a percentage of their purchases through the company to selected non-profit organizations will end next month, according to a Wednesday announcement from the online retailer.
“We are writing to let you know that we plan to wind down AmazonSmile by February 20, 2023,” Amazon said. “We will continue to pursue and invest in other areas where we’ve seen we can make meaningful change — from building affordable housing to providing access to computer science education for students in underserved communities to using our logistics infrastructure and technology to assist broad communities impacted by natural disasters.”
Amazon added that it would help charities that receive donations through the program during the transition. The company said it would provide a one-time donation “equivalent to three months of what they earned in 2022 through the program.”
The company’s stock has experienced drops over the past year, with a loss of $1 trillion in market capitalization from its all-time high in 2021, according to the Washington Examiner. Amazon has also recently made other significant changes, including an abrupt closure of its telehealth service and stopping the construction of dozens of planned warehouses.
On January 4, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy revealed that the company planned to eliminate more than 18,000 jobs, with the majority of the positions from Amazon Stores and employees in its People, Experience, and Technology (PXT) organization.
“Amazon has weathered uncertain and difficult economies in the past, and we will continue to do so. These changes will help us pursue our long-term opportunities with a stronger cost structure,” Jassy said.
Amazon is not alone among technology companies announcing cutbacks in recent weeks. For example, Microsoft announced this week that it would release 10,000 employees over the next several months to reduce costs, representing 5% of its workforce.
Firms in the sector dismissed more than 90,000 workers, according to a report from CrunchBase, which included both small businesses and larger corporations like Amazon.
Salesforce also announced a reduction of 10% of its workforce earlier this month as part of massive layoffs facing the tech industry.
“As our revenue accelerated through the pandemic, we hired too many people leading into this economic downturn we’re now facing, and I take responsibility for that,” Salesforce co-CEO Marc Benioff told employees. “I’m grateful for every single one of you who has contributed to our continued success as a company, and the hard work and sacrifices you have made to generate success for our hundreds of thousands of customers.”