Some big-name companies are laying off workers. Here's what it means

A series of layoffs in recent days slashed tens of thousands of jobs combined at name-brand companies like Amazon, UPS and Pinterest.

A series of job cuts in recent days slashed tens of thousands of workers combined at name-brand companies like Amazon, UPS and Pinterest.

The moves drew renewed attention to a sharp slowdown in the labor market, which has prompted interest-rate cuts at the Federal Reserve and concern among some observers about the health of the economy.

So far, analysts told ABC News, the cooling labor market has avoided widespread job losses, making the recent flurry of layoffs an outlier. The high-profile cuts reflect trends in tech and some other sectors, however, where companies have reversed a pandemic-era hiring blitz and pivoted in response to artificial intelligence.

“Right now, companies like Amazon and UPS are the exception rather than the rule in terms of permanent layoffs,” said Harry Holzer, a professor of public policy at Georgetown University and a former chief economist at the U.S. Department of Labor.

“It makes sense for workers to worry a little bit,” Holzer added, noting a potential workplace shakeup that could be wrought by AI, especially in tech. For now, he added, most sectors of the economy remain “uncertain” about how they’ll incorporate the technology.