OLX Announces Major Layoffs - 1500 Job Cuts Internationally

The international online classifieds operator OLX Group has announced that it is cutting jobs equal to 15% of its global workforce.

A company spokesperson told the Indian publication The Financial Express that 1500 employees will be laid off across multiple business functions across international segments of OLX Group. OLX is headquartered in Amsterdam but has operations in many markets around the world including the real estate verticals Property24 (South Africa), Storia (Romania), Otodom (Poland) and Imovirtual (Portugal).

The news isn't quite the surprise it may look at first glance: last week, Prosus (owner of OLX Group) announced it would cut 30% of its global workforce.

OLX hasn't confirmed where exactly the job losses will hit, but the announcement was (perhaps tellingly) made out of OLX India.

A company statement given to The Financial Express said:

"We can confirm that OLX is reducing its global workforce by 15% which impacts staff across all countries, business units and job functions.

"OLX is taking necessary measures to reduce its cost structure in light of changing macroeconomic conditions. Regrettably, this means we are reducing the size of our workforce across the company. We are sorry to part ways with these valuable contributors, but doing so is necessary to meet our future ambitions.

"Ensuring that our employees are treated fairly and with dignity and respect is at the forefront of our attention at this time."

In its most recent report to the market, Prosus saw trading losses in its online classifieds division widen to $159m for the six months ended 30th of September. The company said then that it would "focus on cost efficiency to accelerate profitability improvements".

Meanwhile, OLX has put the Indonesian arm of its international automotive marketplace up for sale. OLX Autos continues to operate in India, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Poland, Turkey and the US.