Google has reduced its workforce by around 40-45 positions within its news division. The details about these job cuts were disclosed by a spokesperson from the Alphabet Workers Union. While a Google spokesperson acknowledged the job reductions, they also noted that there are still 'hundreds of people' employed in Google's news division.

According to CNBC, a spokesperson stated, "We’re deeply committed to a vibrant information ecosystem, and news is a part of that long-term investment. We’ve made some internal changes to streamline our organisation. A small number of employees were impacted. We’re supporting everyone with a transition period, outplacement services and severance as they look for new opportunities at Google and beyond."

Back in June of this year, Madhav Chinnappa, who served as the director of news at Google, was laid off as part of the company's recent workforce reductions. He shared this news in a LinkedIn post last Saturday, explaining that he had departed from Google because of the layoffs.

Google downsized its workforce to adapt to the challenges posed by the global economic slowdown. Nonetheless, Chinnappa conveyed his pride in his achievements over his almost 13-year tenure at Google, even in the face of these circumstances.

"From Digital News Initiative (which wasn’t just a Fund - though a wise person did say that it helped kickstart a European media R&D culture) to the Google News Initiative Innovation Challenges - and of course Ludovic Blecher’s brilliant idea: JERF, the Journalism Emergency Relief Fund which showcased the best of Google: helping where it could when a vulnerable part of the news ecosystem needed it most and involving 300 Googlers," he wrote.

Chinnappa, who had his base in London, disclosed his intention to take a one-month break before venturing into new opportunities or contemplating the next steps in his career. He explained, " And what now: I am in the privileged position of being able (to take) some time to figure that out. In the near term, I have some pressing family issues that need my fuller attention, so in the spirit of the Zen proverb that the tea cup must be empty before it can be full, I will take August off, then spend September looking after my mum in India and only start thinking about work in October with a view to doing more things in 2024," shared Chinnappa.

Google News compiles high-ranking news articles tailored to users' preferences and geographical locations. To access it, you can click on the 'News' tab after entering a search keyword. Google, the renowned search engine, also maintains a handpicked collection of news articles within Google News, focusing on the most recent events.

In January of this year, Google's massive layoffs, first disclosed by CEO Sundar Pichai, affected around 12,000 people globally. These layoffs extended to the company's mapping app, Waze, which was announced last month. In the wake of these job cuts, stories from the affected employees have started emerging on social media platforms.

During the downsizing, some employees found themselves facing job losses while on maternity leave, and others received termination notices while on vacation. Interestingly, even high-ranking Google executives, including the company's Mental Health Head, were among those who lost their jobs during this restructuring.

The technology industry has been significantly impacted by economic challenges, and the frequent reports of layoffs stand as a testament to this challenging situation.

Sundar Pichai, Google's CEO, had announced back in January of this year that the company would be cutting approximately 12,000 positions from its workforce. He explained that in the preceding two years, the company had gone through significant periods of rapid expansion.