Expedia Layoffs: Travel Firm To Cut 1,500 Jobs Worldwide

As of the end of 2023, the Seattle-headquartered travel firm had a workforce of 17,100 individuals spread across over 50 nations

Online travel firm Expedia Group is cutting approximately 1,500 jobs worldwide, representing about 9 per cent of its workforce, as a part of "organisational and technological transformation", the company said on Monday, according to a report by the news agency Reuters. This announcement came from the company following a leadership transition announced earlier this month. Expedia's earlier caution that revenue would ease in 2024 due to declining air ticket prices and the announcement of CEO Peter Kern's departure.

As per a Bloomberg report, certain Expedia employees have begun receiving notifications regarding the forthcoming job cuts.

"The business continues to evaluate the appropriate allocation of resources to ensure the most important work continues to be prioritised," an Expedia Group spokesperson told Reuters.

As of the end of 2023, the Seattle-headquartered travel firm had a workforce of 17,100 individuals spread across over 50 nations, with approximately half engaged in technology-related positions, as per the company's annual report. Earlier this month, Expedia disclosed lacklustre holiday results and provided a less optimistic projection for the ongoing quarter.

For the fourth quarter, Expedia registered gross bookings of $ 21.7 billion, falling short of analysts' average projection of $22 billion.

Expedia is shifting its focus towards sales growth this year, following two years of concentrating on technical enhancements. Although its consumer segment has experienced a slowdown in revenue growth over the past two quarters, Expedia's enterprise division, responsible for selling advertising and travel technology to corporate clients and supporting travel booking platforms for prominent brands such as Walmart Inc. and American Express Co., has been driving double-digit gains for the company, according to Bloomberg.

Expedia also revealed a leadership transition, appointing Ariane Gorin, the current head of the rapidly expanding enterprise division, as the new chief executive officer effective May 13. The firm also stated that the total pre-tax charges and cash expenditures linked with the restructuring measures are anticipated to fall within the range of $ 80 million to $ 100 million.