WiseTech begins redundancies – but omits ‘AI’ from emails to Chinese employees, workers say

WiseTech has begun informing staff that they will lose their jobs as part of redundancies the company has said is due to artificial intelligence advancements – although an email to staff in China omitted the word “AI” after a court case against another company in the country. Staff at WiseTech have been waiting almost three months to be told if they are among the 2,000 people the logistics software company is to cut due to advances in AI. The Australian Stock Exchange-listed company announced in late February it would lay off almost 30% of its 7,000-strong workforce across 40 countries. A spokesperson for WiseTech said the process had begun in South Korea and Mexico, and would start in other countries including Australia next week. In an email to staff sent this week laying out the timeline for the redundancy process, the company referred to an “AI transformation”, saying “AI has fundamentally changed how work gets done across many industries and businesses”. However, in internal WiseTech Global Teams chats on Wednesday seen by Guardian Australia, staff noted the wording in the email sent to China-based employees was changed to “global transformation” and the second line was omitted from the email. Employees in the chat asked the chief executive, Zubin Appoo, whether this was done in response to a recent Chinese court ruling compensating a tech company employee – who was sacked and replaced with AI – almost A$53,000. “Changing the content of just one email seems quite confusing,” one employee said. “We have several emails that can demonstrate it was an AI layoff.” “Zubin can you please clearly explain what legal law prevented you from [including the] word AI [in the] China email when you have been clear through out past three months that these redundancies are due to AI?” another asked. Appoo’s reply – which mirrored the statement received following questions from Guardian Australia – explained that “different jurisdictions have different legal and regulatory requirements, which is why some communications may vary by country.” The WiseTech spokesperson said the language of internal communications “has no bearing on the obligations we have to our employees in this process, which remain constant regardless of geography.” “We are committed to fulfilling these obligations and treating our employees fairly and respectfully.” Morale at the company among those who have waited months to learn their fate is understood to be low. “I still remember being proud telling people what the company stood for and how amazing it was to work here,” one employee said in the chat. “Throughout this process I’ve watched good hardworking friends and colleagues have to resort to hallway whispers and gossip to find out clues about their fate at the company, that’s not transparency.” One employee, who is not authorised to speak publicly, told Guardian Australia it had been three months of stress and checking his inbox every morning waiting to find out. “Now that we know when, the anxiety has shifted into something else. More like sadness,” the man, who is based in Sydney, said. “Not that long ago people were genuinely proud to work here … and it took a few days to destroy that completely.” The man said people are fighting for anything above the minimum redundancy package, and the uncertainty in the past few months has meant employees were deferring holidays, home purchases or starting a family while they have waited. Another employee, based in Germany, said the communication from WiseTech – both internal and external – doesn’t seem to be backed up by a “real plan”. “Our leadership is ghosting their complete reporting line and hiding behind Zubin’s emails – which are anything other than clear and specific,” he said. “Everything has come to a halt now because people do not know what the future will bring and what they should do now since there is no clear guidance or vision for the products involved.” The union representing the tech workers, Professionals Australia, presented a petition signed by nearly 600 WiseTech employees to Appoo last week, calling for fair redundancy packages, transparency and genuine consultation. “This is what AI disruption looks like on the ground and workers are terrified,” Paul Inglis, director at Professionals Australia, said. “In just eight weeks, union membership at WiseTech has surged over 30 per cent of the technical workforce. That sends a clear message: workers do not feel protected navigating this change alone. “Big tech cannot be allowed to reshape the workforce without accountability. Enough is enough.”