Google Layoffs 2025: ‘Performance Will Be Rewarded’ Sparks Employee Backlash

By Staff at DunePost | April 29, 2025

Everything changed when Maya Chen woke up three weeks ago to an email. She was one of 1,200+ casualties in the Google Layoffs 2025 – cut after six years as a program manager on the Assistant team despite ‘exceeds expectations’ reviews.

Chen told DunePost, “My manager didn’t even know it was happening,” “You’re working on projects that are allegedly essential to the company’s AI strategy one day, and then HR revokes your access and you have to read a predetermined farewell.”

Chen is not by himself. After laying off 12,000 employees in 2023, Alphabet, the parent company of Google, has now eliminated over 1,800 positions in 2024. Previously untouchable divisions of the company, including Google Assistant, Pixel hardware teams, and core.

However, the cold new reality being conveyed from the top is more concerning to the remaining Google employees than the layoffs alone.

Work More Immediately or Face Repercussions

According to internal documents that DunePost was able to obtain, CEO Sundar Pichai has given his staff his most direct message to date: performance will decide who stays and who leaves.

In a memo sent to the entire organization last week, Pichai stated, “We need to work with greater urgency, sharper focus, and hunger than we’ve shown on our best days.” “We’ll continue to create opportunities for performance-based rewards, but we won’t hesitate to make difficult decisions where necessary,” the message went on to say, in an unusually direct warning.

For a business that was formerly well-known for its generous benefits, work-life balance, and “20% time” innovation policy, this signifies a significant cultural shift. “The company is implementing more rigorous performance management systems,” according to Fiona Cicconi, Google’s chief people officer, who reaffirmed the message in a separate email, adding that “employees should expect more performance-related actions in the coming quarters.”

Employee Morale Is Dropping

According to DunePost’s review of dozens of posts on workplace forums like Blind and Glassdoor, the reaction from Google’s employees has been prompt and mainly negative.

According to a verified Google employee on Blind, “Morale is absolutely dead,” “After hours, we’re all just updating our resumes and waiting for the next round of cuts.”

“We built this company’s success with 80-hour weeks and genuine passion,” said an eight-year veteran employee. On a spreadsheet, we are now disposable assets. The Google that I was a part of is no longer there.

According to internal surveys, employee trust in leadership has fallen to its lowest point in the company’s history. Three years ago, 88% of employees said they trusted executive decisions; today, only 62% do.

Wall Street Cheers While Employees Fear

Wall Street has warmly embraced Google’s tougher stance as staff members struggle with the new reality. Since the layoff announcements, Alphabet’s stock has increased by 18%, increasing its market capitalization by about $320 billion.

The layoffs, according to financial analysts, show that Google is finally resolving long-standing issues with its overworked staff and falling productivity per employee.

“This is precisely what investors have been requesting,” Priya Sharma, a tech analyst at Morgan Stanley, stated. “Tech companies no longer function as well-funded academic institutions. This is the power of Wall Street to assert its dominance over people through productivity.

In a formal statement to DunePost, Google stressed that it is still dedicated to its employees and is “making responsible decisions for long-term health.”

A Google representative stated, “We’re making changes to simplify our organization and reallocate resources to our biggest product priorities.” “We’re working to support affected employees through their transitions, and these decisions are not made lightly.”

A Component of a Wider Pattern

Similar changes in Big Tech are reflected in Google’s shift toward efficiency. Since 2022, Meta’s “year of efficiency” has led to 21,000 layoffs. In the same time frame, Amazon has laid off almost 27,000 employees, while Microsoft, in spite of record profits, laid off 10,000 employees last year.

Google’s predicament is noteworthy because it stands in stark contrast to the company’s meticulously maintained reputation as the best place to work, which has been developed over the course of two decades.

The change is unavoidable, according to tech industry veteran and former Google engineering director Alex Kaplan, who departed the company in 2023.

Kaplan told DunePost, “The pressure was building for years.” “Google lost the productivity standards that set it apart, became overconfident, and hired too many people. Reality is now setting in, and it hurts to see.”

A Future Without Certainty

The message is clear for those who are still employed by Google: either get used to the new standards or get ready to quit. In order to more aggressively identify the bottom 10% of performers, the company has already modified its performance review system.

In an anonymous internal post, one worker stated: “Google used to ask ‘How can we make work better for you?'” “What have you done for shareholders lately?” they ask now.

The crucial question still stands: will this fundamental change in Google’s culture push top talent to smaller, more agile rivals, or is this just the new normal for a mature industry?

See DunePost’s special report on Big Tech’s workforce transformation for additional analysis on layoffs in the tech sector and their effects.