High confidence Feb 5, 2025

Workday

− 1,750 ~1,750 (8.5% of workforce)

Attribution · verbatim quote

“While we are eliminating some positions, we will continue to hire in key strategic areas and locations throughout FY26. We're also prioritizing innovation investments like AI and platform development, and rigorously evaluating the ROI of others across the board.”

— Carl Eschenbach (ceo)

Summary

Workday announced approximately 1,750 role eliminations in February 2025. CEO Carl Eschenbach identified AI and platform development among the investments prioritized during the restructuring, alongside process, role and location changes; the company did not say AI automation directly replaced those workers.

Evidence notes

· The recorded quote is an uninterrupted two-sentence passage in Eschenbach's first-party February 5 memo; it directly connects eliminated positions to strategic hiring and AI investment, not AI replacing the affected staff.
· The memo lists AI/platform investment, process redesign, role clarity and geographic footprint as separate reasons; roughly $230–270 million in restructuring charges was disclosed.

Sources

Changes to Position Workday for the Future

Workday Blog · Press release · 2025-02-05 · blog.workday.com

A workforce management giant will lay off 1,750 employees to make way for AI

Fortune · News · 2025-02-07 · fortune.com

Workday lays off 1,750 employees, or about 8.5% of its workforce

Yahoo Finance · News · 2025-02-07 · finance.yahoo.com