ST. LOUIS — The financial services firm Block, formerly known as Square Inc., is laying off dozens in Missouri as part of a previously announced workforce reduction.
The state on Wednesday released a layoff notice for 32 positions at Block. The company had disclosed, in November, that in a bid for efficiency, it planned to cap its total workforce at 12,000 — roughly 1,000 fewer people than it employed at the time. The reductions were expected to take place by the end of 2024.
The layoffs will take effect on March 30, according to additional information released by the state on Thursday. Employees were notified Tuesday. The cuts affect remote workers in Square, Cash App, and "foundational" teams (Block's foundational teams include sections like legal, finance and HR).
The Wall Street Journal reported that Block laid off hundreds across the company Tuesday, citing a source familiar with the matter.
The cutbacks are the latest in a series of tech-sector layoffs. The San Jose, California-based financial services firm PayPal Tuesday that it planned to cut its global workforce by about 9%.
Block, the parent company of Square and mobile payment service Cash App, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
In November, Block founder Jack Dorsey wrote in a letter to shareholders that he believed the company had been getting in its own way because of redundancies, and needed to become more centralized.
Dorsey founded Block along with fellow ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ native Jim McKelvey. Dorsey stepped back into the top leadership role at Block after former Square CEO Alyssa Henry departed the company on Oct. 2.
One year ago, Block announced plans to cut down its footprint at its ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ office, the former Post-Dispatch building, at 900 North Tucker Boulevard, as part of an expansion into hybrid work. The company signed a 15-year lease for eight floors in 2019 and planned to shrink to just four floors in 2024.
View life in ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ through the lenses of the Post-Dispatch photographers. Edited by Jenna Jones.
