Amazon to cut jobs, revamp operations

SAN FRANCISCO: Online retailer Amazon.com said it is cutting jobs and relocating workers from its office in Guyancourt, France, as it centralizes some operations in the United States and the UK.

Seattle-based Amazon, the world's biggest non-auction Internet retailer, said although it is centralizing functions like finance and Web site development, it will retain an as-yet unknown number of workers from the Guyancourt office. Those employees will be relocated from their current location near Versailles to smaller offices closer to Paris.

"Like all companies, we're looking for ways to make the business more efficient," said Amazon spokeswoman Patty Smith, who declined to say how many employees work in the Guyancourt office or how many will ultimately be affected.

Smith said Amazon is in talks with the Works Council, a representative group of employees, and that Amazon will offer relocation to the UK, reassignment to other parts of the company or severance packages. Negotiations should be completed in the coming months, she said.

Amazon also operates a distribution center in Orleans, France.

At the end of the first quarter, Amazon had 8,100 employees globally.