The Walmart at 355 Lincoln Ave., East Stroudsburg, is seen on April 24, 2025.
San Bruno, California – Walmart is laying off over 100 employees at its San Bruno, California technology office, part of a broader corporate restructuring that could impact as many as 1,500 workers nationwide. The job cuts were disclosed in a May 23 filing with the California Employment Development Department, as required under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act.
The layoffs in San Bruno affect engineers, data scientists, and a range of mid-level managers in departments including marketing, finance, creative services, and operations. While some of the 106 affected workers may be offered opportunities to transfer to other roles within the company, Walmart has confirmed that for those who do not accept a new placement, the terminations will be permanent.
In an internal memo, Walmart’s Global Chief Technology Officer Suresh Kumar and U.S. CEO John Furner framed the cuts as part of a strategic plan titled “Building for the Future.” The memo emphasized the company’s goal of streamlining operations and accelerating innovation across its technology and U.S. business units. “Reshaping our structure allows us to accelerate how we deliver and adapt to the changing environment around us,” the memo stated.
California’s WARN notice echoed that language, citing the need to “remove layers and complexity” and improve decision-making speed. Layoffs of this nature have become increasingly common across the corporate landscape in 2025, especially as large companies recalibrate their post-pandemic workforces and embrace automation and AI-driven systems.
However, the timing of Walmart’s announcement comes amid heightened political and economic pressures. The company’s leadership has previously warned that tariffs implemented by President Donald Trump could increase prices for consumers. In mid-May, Walmart CFO John David Rainey told CNBC that import costs were rising, and while the company was working to minimize the impact, price hikes were inevitable.
Trump responded in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, criticizing Walmart’s stance and asserting that the company should absorb the costs rather than pass them on to consumers. “Between Walmart and China they should, as is said, ‘EAT THE TARIFFS,’ and not charge valued customers ANYTHING,” the former president wrote. “I’ll be watching, and so will your customers!!!”
Despite the political rhetoric, Walmart maintains that the layoffs are unrelated to tariffs and instead reflect a long-term business strategy to align staff with changing priorities and emerging technologies.
