🕵🏻‍♀️ Katie Wilson (and her mom) address “momgate”

Amazon’s Record Layoffs Begin

On Tuesday, Amazon told employees it’s cutting 14,000 corporate jobs to make room for company-wide adoption of AI. It’s not just Amazon. A number of Seattle-based employers have announced workforce reductions. If these cuts are impacting you or people you know, here’s how to apply for unemployment benefits. Keep in mind, with the government shutdown and the influx of newly laid-off workers, wait times might be longer than usual. [CNN]

• Layoffs at Amazon: This first round of layoffs is only the beginning. On Monday, Reuters reported the job cuts could ultimately reach 30,000. That’s nearly 10% of its 350,000 corporate employees. More than 50,000 of those employees are based in Seattle, and another 14,000 are in Bellevue. If the number of people laid off does reach 30,000, it would be the largest in the company’s history. [Seattle Times]
• Layoffs at Meta: Meta is planning cuts within its AI division, which includes more than 100 Washington employees. A filing with the state’s Employment Security Department shows 101 employees impacted, including 48 in Bellevue, 23 in Seattle, and four in Redmond, along with 23 remote workers based in Washington. [GeekWire]
• Layoffs at King County Regional Homelessness Authority: KCRHA is projecting a $4.7 million budget shortfall in 2026. In order to address this, the authority will cut 22% of its employees. According to Publicola’s Erica C. Barnett, this means eliminating 15 "administrative" staff positions and laying off 11 people. [The Center Square]

🍽️ Eat Your Fill Seattle: Seattle Restaurant Week is back and running through Nov. 8 – really, it should be Seattle Restaurant Weeks. Time to try out restaurants that don’t normally get along with your wallet. Like, when else can you get a three-course meal at Nue for $35?! [Eater Seattle]

🔤 Childcare Is Still Unaffordable: Katie Wilson and The Stranger have now published responses to Mayor Harrell’s text (Wilson is calling it “momgate”). So, with all of the local discourse swirling around childcare, we thought now would be a good time to highlight the thousands of preschoolers who could lose access to Head Start due to the government shutdown. [Washington State Standard]

• This could impact 65,000 children in 140 local Head Start programs across 41 states and Puerto Rico
• Going without grant funding, come Nov. 1, will make childcare less affordable for many low-income families and could reduce their available work hours

🚗 Authorities Investigating SeaTac Uber Scam: A viral Reddit post has led Port of Seattle officials to investigate a rideshare scam at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. In fact, Port Commissioner Sam Cho replied to the post itself, saying he would look into it and try to identify the scammer. The poster described being matched with a black Tesla, but realized something was wrong when the driver demanded Venmo payment and drove in the wrong direction. After repeatedly refusing to pay, they eventually got dropped off along the highway. The trunk of the car was open when they entered, so they did not verify the license plate. Dear reader, always verify the license plate! [Fox13]