Google to lay off 12,000 people — read the memo CEO Sundar Pichai sent to staff

 Google said Friday it will lay off 12,000 people from its workforce, adding to the slew of major U.S. tech companies cutting jobs amid fears of an oncoming recession.

Sundar Pichai, Google’s CEO, said in an email sent to the company’s staff Friday that the firm will begin making layoffs in the U.S. immediately. In other countries, the process “will take longer due to local laws and practices,” he said.

The web search and video sharing giant will offer U.S.-based employees 16 weeks of severance pay plus two weeks for...