Yahoo is retrenching 17 staff members including editorial and social media executives from its Singapore team, who will be leaving Yahoo Singapore with effect from May 7, 2024,  The Edge Singapore reported.

According to The Edge Singapore, those affected had reportedly met a human resources representative on Apr. 23 regarding the retrenchment, and will be compensated with two weeks' worth of salary per year of service.

The move comes after Yahoo announced its new editorial strategy, which will be focused on syndicated content.

A Yahoo spokesperson told Straits Times that the company is shifting its editorial strategy to better align with strategic priorities for Yahoo Singapore.

The spokesperson said that "readers can expect to continue seeing the content they most regularly engage with", from a "diverse selection of high-quality and engaging news, lifestyle and finance content".

Hiring new "curation editors" and market lead

The new content strategy will include syndicated content from Reuters, AFP News and HuffPost and will no longer involve creating original content from Singapore.

The revamp also includes hiring for new roles such as three "curation editors" and one market lead under Yahoo News Singapore.

The company's job listings on LinkedIn indicate that these are remote positions.

Those who have been retrenched are allowed to apply for these roles, reported The Edge Singapore.

Paid two weeks' salary for each year of service

The affected staff had met with the company's human resources representative on Apr. 23.

The retrenched staff are currently on two weeks' notice.

One retrenched employee who wished to remain anonymous told The Edge Singapore that those affected will get slightly more than two weeks’ pay per year of service.

Another employee said in anonymity that the retrenchment was unexpected and that there had no prior hints that Yahoo was transforming its editorial strategy.

No other teams were affected by the retrenchment.

This is not the first time that Yahoo is axing its employees in Singapore.

In October 2022, Yahoo let go of seven employees under its editorial team due to a restructuring within its Southeast Asia team.

The company also retrenched its Singapore employees in 2016.

Top photos via Yahoo/Facebook & Yahoo website