Google's 'Multi-Year' Savings Strategy Includes Cuts On Employees' Tape And Staplers: Report

Google is implementing company-wide cost-cutting measures, and some of the strategies are targeted at reducing employee-related costs such as cutting back on some office supplies, including tape and staplers, a new report revealed.

The search engine giant recently informed employees that the company was cutting back on various employee-related expenses such as tape, staplers, fitness classes and the number of times workers can replace their laptops, according to documents seen by CNBC.

"These are big, multi-year efforts," Ruth Porat, the chief financial officer of Google, said in an email sent to employees Friday, CNBC reported Monday. The email was reportedly titled: "Our company-wide OKR (objectives and key results) on durable savings."

The Wall Street Journal first published some details of Porat's email, wherein the Google and Alphabet CFO said employees should expect more cuts in employee services and in-office perks. In the WSJ report, it was revealed that the company would remove some micro kitchens and shut down office cafeterias on days when there are not too many employees around.

CNBC further revealed other details of the cost-saving efforts, wherein documents seen by the outlet stated that Google would also halt refresh services for desktop PCs and monitors and would change "how often equipment is replaced." For workers in non-engineering positions who need a new laptop, Google will provide a Chromebook "by default," as per CNBC. The said laptop is made by the company and operates on its own Chrome OS.

A directive from a San Francisco facility stated that employees "have been asked to pull all tape/dispensers throughout the building," adding that if a worker needed a stapler or tape, "the receptionist desk has them to borrow," as per CNBC.

A Google spokesperson has refuted CNBC's report about staplers and tape no longer being provided by the search engine giant. "Staplers and tape continue to be provided to print stations. Any internal messages that claim otherwise are misinformed," the spokesperson said in a statement to Fortune.

CNBC previously reported in February that Google was asking cloud employees and partners to share desks in the second quarter of 2023 as part of cost-cutting efforts. The so-called "Cloud Office Evolution" or "CLOE" has been described as "combining the best of pre-pandemic collaboration with the flexibility" of a hybrid work setup.

The new desk-sharing model will be applicable to the following Cloud locations: Sunnyvale, Kirkland, San Francisco, Seattle and New York City, as per an internal FAQ viewed by CNBC. "Many Googlers will now share a desk with one other Googler," the internal document stated.

A CNN report published last month revealed how Google's employee-related cost-cutting measures, specifically its approach to layoffs, seemed "out of step with its renowned employee-centric culture."

CNN noted that Google was the "prototype" of a company that takes pride in putting employee well-being on its priority list. Some former employees who were part of the mass layoffs in January told the outlet that they believe the workforce reductions were "the latest example of a culture shift" that has been underway at the tech giant for several years.

One employee who was laid off in January said Google has been devoted to "revenue and seemingly endless growth" in recent years, which could have resulted in the change in focus that affected employees' welfare.

In January, Google's parent company Alphabet announced that it was cutting 12,000 jobs on a global scale, citing a shifting "economic reality." CEO Sundar Pichai said at the time that the reductions would affect all departments and functions across all regions.

Days after the mass layoff round was announced, Google eliminated more than 1,800 jobs across California locations, including 119 workers in San Bruno. About 27 in-house massage therapists in three facilities were also affected by the layoffs.

Google has joined other big tech giants that cut thousands of jobs in recent months, including Amazon, Microsoft, and Facebook's parent company, Meta.