Amazon rehiring laid-off workers for AI and cloud roles

Amazon rehiring laid-off workers for AI and cloud roles

Wed, September 23, 2026 at 3:13 PM GMT+3 3 min read

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Amazon is reaching out to former employees, among them some who were laid off, about open positions in its AI and cloud-computing divisions, based on recruiter emails that Business Insider obtained and comments from an Amazon spokesperson.

One message, sent last month by a recruiter within Amazon's AI agent organization — an arm overseen by AWS VP Swami Sivasubramanian — solicited former employees with AI and machine learning experience for open positions under a program the recruiter labeled "Swami's Boomerang Reengagement Initiative." In another instance, a recruiter from AWS Finance extended a former employee an expedited interview process leading to an offer, and also inquired whether Amazon's return-to-office requirements had played a role in their departure. "A lot has changed since you were here, and there's some really compelling work happening across AI/ML right now," one email read.

Haley Silva, speaking on behalf of Amazon, told Business Insider the practice of rehiring former employees is well-established across the entire company and is not a recently launched initiative tied specifically to AI or cloud computing. Silva confirmed that people Amazon previously laid off may be among those considered, while emphasizing that outreach is driven by open headcount rather than any effort to recapture workers who departed over the return-to-office policy. She said the company's workplace attendance requirements have not changed.

"We're always interested in connecting with talented people — both new candidates and former Amazonians — for open roles," Silva said.

Amazon has eliminated more than 30,000 positions through several waves of layoffs in the past year, representing some of the deepest job cuts in the company's history. The company eliminated positions in its artificial general intelligence unit earlier this year, saying it was sharpening focus on its most important initiatives. A broader round of layoffs announced at the same time affected approximately 16,000 employees across the company.

The company's return-to-office requirements have created an ongoing drag on its ability to attract AI talent. Business Insider previously reported that the five-day in-office rule and office hub restrictions were making it harder to fill AI roles in 2025, with certain job candidates choosing positions at other employers that paid less but offered greater remote-work latitude.

The outreach reflects a broader shift in hiring practices. Returning employees made up 35% of U.S. new hires in March 2025, up from 31% a year earlier, according to ADP payroll data. In the tech sector, they accounted for nearly two-thirds of new hires over that period. ADP noted that returning workers tend to arrive with scarce skills and typically ramp up more quickly than candidates hired from outside.

Amazon floated the idea of rehiring laid-off workers before. Back in 2023, Business Insider reported that AWS HR VP Ian Wilson informed employees that many workers who had lost their jobs were eligible to be rehired, and suggested that Amazon look into ways of proactively reaching out to former staff who wished to come back.