Google buyouts are being offered to employees on search and other teams as shift to AI ramps up

Google is offering buyouts to certain employees in the United States and requiring more workers to return to offices as it continues to shift toward AI. 

The “voluntary exit program,” as Google calls it, is being offered to employees on the communications, core, knowledge and information (which includes search, ads, and commerce), marketing, and research teams, Google confirmed with Fast Company on Wednesday.

The buyouts would see Google provide employees with a pay and benefits package in exchange for their exit. 

“Earlier this year, some of our teams introduced a voluntary exit program with severance for US-based Googlers, and several more are now offering the program to support our important work ahead,” Google spokesperson Courtenay Mencini said in a statement. “A number of teams are also asking remote employees who live near an office to return to a hybrid work schedule in order to bring folks more together in-person.” 

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The exact details of this deal are to follow, according to a memo reportedly sent by Jen Fitzpatrick, senior vice president of core systems. CNBC reports that mid- to senior-level employees in the Peoples Operations unit received up to 14 weeks of their salary plus another week for every completed year on the job during a previous buyout in February. 

CNBC and Business Insider reported on the memo on Tuesday.

Fitzpatrick reportedly stated that AI is “reshaping everything—our products, our tools, the way we work, how we work, how we innovate and so on.” She continued, “To meet this transformational moment, we need everyone to show up with an unparalleled sense of energy and enthusiasm for Core’s mission, connecting and collaborating at speed so that we can tackle all of the ambitious work we need to do.”

Meeting the moment also means being willing to commute up to 50 miles to the office three times a week. In the same memo, Google reportedly announced that all employees within that distance of an “approved return site” must come in 60% of the time. 

Taking the stance that workers must show face to perform well, Google reportedly stated, “We want to ensure Core Googlers are fully committed to being here and actively contributing. These programs will help us be even more focused on our mission and will enable us to operate with greater velocity, efficiency and collaboration.” 

Meanwhile, Fitzpatrick reportedly noted that the buyouts are for employees “who aren’t feeling excited about and aligned with Core’s mission and goals, or those who are having difficulty meeting the demands of their role.” In other words, if you feel behind at work, quitting might be the best option.

Though the buyouts are voluntary, they could spell layoffs for those teams. In January, Google offered buyouts to employees in its platforms and devices division, only to lay off hundreds of workers in the unit a few months later. Google also laid off about 12,000 employees in January 2023 and has done multiple rounds of layoffs since.