Tim Cook says Apple ‘being very deliberate’ on hiring as recession looms

Apple CEO Tim Cook said the world’s most valuable company will pump the brakes on hiring — as other tech titans slash away — ahead of an anticipated recession.

Cook admitted the economic climate has forced him to freeze new hires in some departments during an interview with “CBS Mornings” on Monday.

“What we’re doing as a consequence of being in this period is we’re being very deliberate on our hiring,” Cook said from Apple’s headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif. “That means we’re continuing to hire, but not everywhere in the company are we hiring.”

Last month, the iPhone maker instituted a hiring freeze for many positions outside of research and development, according to Bloomberg News.

“We believe strongly in investing for the long-term. And we don’t believe you can save your way to prosperity. We think you invest your way to it,” Cook told “CBS Mornings.”

Apple, which tops all companies with a market cap of $2.36 trillion, had roughly 164,000 full-time workers as of Sept. 24, according to its annual report.

Cook also lamented the loss of productivity and creativity as he discussed the company’s return to office policy. Workers have been back at their desks just three days a week since September.

“If you were here on a Friday, it would be a ghost town,” he said.

“We make product, and you have to hold product. You collaborate with one another because we believe that one plus one equals three,” he added. “So that takes the serendipity of running into people, and bouncing ideas off, and caring enough to advance your idea through somebody else because you know that’ll make it a bigger idea.”  

Apple’s hiring slowdown comes as Amazon announced plans to cut 10,000 jobs in its corporate and technology sectors beginning this week, according to the New York Times.

Last week, Meta announced the largest layoffs in the company’s history, slashing about 11,000 jobs. And Twitter swung the axe on roughly half of its 7,500 workforce after Elon Musk completed his takeover of the social media platform.