Xero, accounting software company founded by Queenstown's darling tech bro Rod Drury, who remains a major shareholder, has just announced massive staff job losses. Proving once again that 'tech entrepreneurs' aren't some new kind of super-employer immune from all the old foibles, but are as capable of acting just as ruthlessly as unscrupulous employers in retail, hospitality and tourism.
In this Stuff article, Xero has announced plans to cut between 700 and 800 jobs. Geordie Rogers, spokesperson for the Aotearoa Tech Union, said it was likely a significant proportion of layoffs would be in New Zealand. “Xero operates globally and is following international trends, and their announcement today makes it clear that Aotearoa is not immune to companies sacrificing workers to please their shareholders.”
This is despite Xero's operating revenue growing 30%, total customer lifetime value increasing 30% and subscribes increasing 16% in the full year 2023 financial results reported in Xero's own blog. However, XERO had a fall in profitability in 2022 due to a company strategy of too rapid expansion and growth. Once again, when businesses take risks like this, it is their workforce that pays the heavy price when entrepreneurial experiments don't work out how they'd hoped.
Tech workers need to unionise to protect their wages, conditions and jobs. Aotearoa Tech Union (ATU) was formed in 2018 to support workers in technology-associated roles and organisations, and to advocate for their common benefit regardless of who they work for and whether they work full-time, part-time, as a freelance contractor, or as an intern or student.
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