Analysis | Record revenue and a 28% jump in profit arrived alongside plans to cut about 3,500 jobs. Strong earnings used to mean security for workers. That link is weakening.
American Express reported record revenue on Friday and, in the same announcement, said it will eliminate roughly 5% of its global workforce, about 3,500 positions.
The third-quarter results were strong by any measure. Revenue rose 9% to $20.06 billion, net income climbed 28% to $3.71 billion, and adjusted earnings of $4.68 per share beat expectations. The company also raised its full-year outlook. Billed business reached $454 billion, up about 8% after adjusting for foreign exchange. According to the Associated Press, average customer spending rose 5% to $6,735 and travel and entertainment spending rose 10%. Higher fees on premium cards, including the Platinum Card’s increase from $695 to $895, helped.
This is not a company in trouble, and that is exactly why the announcement matters.
A Restructuring From Strength
CEO Stephen Squeri told investors the company took a $336 million restructuring charge in the quarter to reduce complexity, streamline operations and speed up decision-making. Senior leaders had reviewed their teams to decide which responsibilities were essential and where management layers could be simplified. Squeri framed the cuts as preparation for the company’s next stage, not a response to weakness.
I take him at his word, and that is the problem. If the cuts aren’t a response to weakness, they are a choice, one made by a company with record revenue and rising profits that decided it needs fewer people to do what comes next.
Where AI Fits, and Where We Don’t Know
On the earnings call, Squeri said American Express is using AI to automate processes and improve productivity. He also described a future in which AI agents influence how customers discover products, compare options and make payments, and said the company will require approved technical channels rather than give outside agents unrestricted access to its systems.
What the company has not said is how many of the 3,500 jobs are tied to AI. It has not broken down which roles are being cut or why. Some positions may disappear because tasks can now be automated, others through management consolidation or shifting priorities. That uncertainty is real, and I’m not claiming AI caused these cuts.
But the distinction matters less to the people losing their jobs than to the rest of us. Whatever the mix of causes, American Express has shown it can grow revenue while shrinking headcount, and the AI narrative gives every company a ready explanation for doing the same.
Profitable Doesn’t Mean Protected
For decades, a reasonable worker could treat strong earnings as a sign of stability. That relationship was never a guarantee, but it held often enough to shape how people thought about careers: stay, build expertise, and the company’s success will eventually cover you.
I think that assumption is breaking. Tools now exist that can absorb parts of administrative work, customer support, research and internal coordination, and the pressure to control costs doesn’t ease when profits are high. Financial institutions including Barclays and Citigroup have also pursued significant workforce reductions or restructuring as the industry invests in technology and seeks greater efficiency.
The risk for employees is a new definition of productivity. Meeting your targets may no longer be enough if leadership believes the same output can be produced with fewer people or more automation. Those who stay inherit larger workloads and the pressure to prove their roles can’t be consolidated.
What Remains Unanswered
Investors will likely welcome the cuts, and customers may eventually see faster service and more personalized offers. Those gains are real. But they accrue to people other than the workers whose jobs are removed.
The company has not publicly said which departments or regions will be hit, what severance or notice affected employees will receive, or whether it will offer retraining or internal moves. Those answers will show whether this restructuring treats employees as part of the company’s future or only its past.
Percentages make five percent sound modest. For about 3,500 people, it is lost income, benefits and a career built around the company. A business can be healthy while its employees are not secure, and American Express just put that on the record.