In the parent company Alibaba 6.Shortly after the $3.4 billion investment, Southeast Asian e-commerce giant Lazada began a new round of staffing changes.。

Lazada was hit by layoffs at the beginning of the year.

It is reported that Lazada will lay off 30% of its employees in six major markets in Southeast Asia (Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam) from January 3, and the company has more than 10,000 employees there.。The laid-off employee received the email on January 2 and met separately with the company's personnel department on January 3, the person said.。

According to people familiar with the matter, the layoffs may last for a week, and the Singapore office is currently the most affected, involving employees at all levels in multiple departments, with customer service, marketing and commercial teams changing the most.。Malaysia may be the next affected sector, and senior staff in the Kuala Lumpur office have said they are looking for other job opportunities.。

Several employees described the layoffs as "unfair," "opaque" and "inexplicable," and caused considerable anxiety and suspicion among the workforce, adding: "Lazada's amount is lower than the severance payments made by other tech companies such as Shopee and Grab last year.。"

The currently known fired executives include Singapore-based chief customer service officer Brigitte Daubry, as well as all six market chief marketing officers.。

Lazada did not provide details on the number of layoffs, compensation, etc., but said: "We are actively adjusting the workforce to optimize positioning and will work more flexibly and streamlined to meet future business needs.。"

Electric business is besieged by Lazada

Today, the profits of the global e-commerce industry continue to set new records。Although the new crown epidemic has largely boosted the e-commerce industry, post-epidemic growth remains high。

According to the data, in 2022, the GMV of nine Southeast Asian e-commerce platforms, including Shopee, Lazada and Tokopedia, totaled $99.5 billion.。Among them, Lazada's GMV reached 20.1 billion US dollars, ranking second in Southeast Asia except Indonesia, second only to Shopee with GMV of 47.9 billion US dollars (about half of the total GMV value of Southeast Asian e-commerce)。

Lazada's goal is to achieve $100 billion in GMV by 2030 and serve 300 million consumers.。

Looking at the whole industry, Lazada is facing fierce siege from many competitors: in addition to heavyweight players such as TikTok Shop and Temu, there are also local e-commerce companies such as Tokopedia and Bukalapak, and the Southeast Asian e-commerce industry is in full swing, so it is not easy for Lazada to break the army.。

Not only that, but for Lazada, its main competitors Shopee and TikTokShop use shopping and entertainment as a means to increase sales, and although Lazada supports live delivery and even has built-in game functions, its response has been unsatisfactory.。At the same time, Lazada is not as good as most e-commerce platforms such as Shopee and Zalora to support "buy before pay (BNPL)" services, and is slightly weaker in terms of optional payment methods.。

Southeast Asia's technological change AI triggers' wave of layoffs "

By 2023, e-commerce platforms across the Asia-Pacific region will not escape layoffs, even if not to mention the fierce competition, but the widespread application of AI and other technologies has also crowded out a considerable number of employees, Shopee, GoTo, Grab, Carsome and many other Southeast Asian technology companies have also carried out layoffs of varying degrees.。

Shopee cut about 500 jobs in Indonesia and Tokopedia cut about 600 jobs in Indonesia in 2023, while Zalora can still maintain its workforce and remain profitable.。

In response to this trend, the Singapore Digital Industry Development Division (DISG) issued a statement saying that the division is working closely with businesses and relevant government agencies to assist laid-off employees in finding employment opportunities.。

The Division is confident about the prospects of Singapore's technology sector, given that Asia's digital economy is still booming today, said DISG Director-General Chen Yiming.。"Global and local tech companies will continue to invest in Singapore and recruit local talent to support regional development.。"

Unannounced moves criticize Lazada for "correcting mistakes"

Recently, the National Workers' Union of Singapore (NTUC) and the Food and Beverage and Industry Workers' Union (FDAWU) affiliated with Lazada criticized Lazada for initiating layoffs without prior notification to the union。In response, the FDAWU has sent a letter to Lazada stating that its actions are unacceptable and that it has informed personnel of the case.。

FDAWU said companies must work closely with trade unions to ensure a fair and equitable layoff process under the Fair Layoffs Framework guidelines, protecting the core interests of all employees, especially Singapore, and that layoffs should only be an option of last resort.。

On January 6, NTUC and FDAWU issued a joint statement saying that Lazada's affected employees were mainly white-collar workers, including professionals, managers and executives (PME), whose severance benefits were "two weeks' worth of compensation for each full year of work."。The FDAWU expressed displeasure and negotiated with the company for additional benefits.。

Lazada has apologised for the breach and has agreed to work closely with FDAWU to give priority to the interests of employees and will provide any information necessary to ensure the layoffs are carried out in a fair manner.。The company said: "We have always respected Singapore's labour laws and employee benefits.。Regarding the recent business transformation, we are actively maintaining close communication and cooperation with the Singapore government, NTUC, FDAWU and relevant agencies。"