Google lays off staff from Flutter, Dart and Python teams weeks before its developer conference

Ahead of Google’s annual I/O developer conference in May, the tech giant laid off staff in key teams like Flutter, Dart, Python and others, according to reports from affected employees shared online social. Google confirmed the layoffs to TechCrunch, but not the specific teams, roles or number of people laid off.

“As we have said, we are investing responsibly in our company’s biggest priorities and the significant opportunities ahead,” Google spokesperson Alex García-Kummert said. “To best position ourselves for these opportunities, throughout the second half of 2023 and into 2024, a number of our teams have made changes to become more efficient and work better, removing layers and aligning their resources to their highest product priorities. Through this, we are simplifying our structures to give employees more opportunities to work on our most innovative and important advancements and our biggest corporate priorities, while reducing bureaucracy and levels,” he said. -he adds.

The company clarified that the layoffs did not concern the entire company but were reorganizations that were part of the normal course of business. Affected employees will be able to apply for other open positions at Google, we’re told.

In a messagea Flutter and Dart PM said the layoffs affected “A LOT of teams” and “many big projects lost people.”

“We’re sad, but we continue to work hard on I/O and beyond,” wrote Google PM Kevin Moore in the Flutter dev community on Reddit, where he added that Flutter and Dart don’t were neither more nor less affected than the other teams. “We know you will care A LOT about the project, the team and the amazing ecosystem we have built together. You are nervous. I understand. We understood. You bet on Flutter and Dart. Me too. Google too,” he said.

Google also told TechCrunch that Flutter will have new updates to share during I/O this year.

In a separate post on Reddit, another commenter noted that the Python team affected by the layoffs was the one that managed internal Python runtimes and toolchains and worked with OSS Python. That group included “several current and former core developers and board members,” they said.

Meanwhile, others shared on Y Combinator’s Hacker News, where a member of the Python team detailed his specific tasks on the technical side and noted that, for years, much of the work was done with less than 10 people. Another Hacker News commenter said his early years on the Python team were spent paying off internal technical debt accumulated due to the lack of a solid Python strategy.

“(D)espite the staff shortage, we had managers who were extremely good at maintaining work-life balance and a “marathon, not sprint” approach to working. As I said in another comment, this is the best job I’ve ever had, and I will miss it deeply,” they wrote.

“Python was one of the very first languages ​​widely used at Google. It was the last major backend language to have a language team,” user gpshead also said.

Although Google did not detail headcount, some layoffs at Google may have been confirmed in a WARN notice filed on April 24. WARN, or California’s Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, requires employers with more than 100 employees to provide 60,000 employees. one day’s notice before layoffs. In the filing, Google announced it was laying off a total of 50 employees across three locations in Sunnyvale.

CNBC reports that a total of 200 people were laid off across Google’s “core” teams, which included those working on Python, application platforms and other engineering roles. Some jobs have been transferred to India and Mexico, he said, citing internal documents.

On social media, commenters expressed concerns particularly about the Python layoffs, given the role Python tools play in AI. But others have pointed out that Google hasn’t eliminated its Python team; he replaced that team with another group based in Munich – at least according to Python Steering Council member Thomas Wouters in an article on Mastodon last Thursday.

“It’s a tough day when everyone you work directly with, including your manager, is made redundant – excuse me, ‘their roles have been reduced’ and you’re asked to onboard their replacements, people have to take on these same roles immediately after. a different country and who are no happier for it,” he said.

Google said it would support all affected employees, in accordance with local requirements, by giving them time to search for different roles at Google or elsewhere, access to outplacement services and severance packages.

Article originally published on April 29, 2024 at 11:32 a.m. PT. Updated with new information from CNBC on May 1, 2024, 1:55 p.m. ET.