Business Insider's reporters walk through the big layoffs at Amazon, why the cuts came, and who could be next.

The layoffs of software engineers reflect a striking shift for an industry that has traditionally relied on coders to help build and maintain the backbone of digital platforms.

The direct action taken by companies to cut jobs, for different reasons, may act as a warning that a snowball effect could be in the works.

One chart shows how Amazon's workforce surged during the pandemic and Great Resignation. The new corporate layoffs are a small share of its employees.

Amazon is set to slash thousands of corporate jobs starting Oct. 28, according to multiple reports. The impending corporate layoffs amount to the largest such job reduction in the company's history, CNBC and Reuters reported, citing anonymous sources.

The notification with Amazon’s entire list is online at the state’s WARN site. Separately, a regional delivery service partner with Amazon has filed a layoff notice with the state Department of Employment Security, eliminating more than 100 jobs.

On Tuesday, October 28, word spread like wildfire that Amazon was initiating a huge number of layoffs. While Amazon's Senior Vice President of People, Experience and Technology Beth Galetti said the decision would impact roughly 14,000 employees, insiders told national news outlets that number could be more than doubled.

On social media and elsewhere, impacted employees and others reacted to Amazon's decision to cut 14,000 corporate and tech workers across numerous divisions.