The Data Behind the Growing Public Outcry Against FedEx
In a growing controversy that has ignited debate over corporate ethics and nationalistic hiring practices, global logistics giant FedEx is facing intense public and political scrutiny.
The criticism centers on a stark paradox: the company has significantly increased its hiring of foreign workers under the H-1B visa scheme while simultaneously executing large-scale layoffs of its American workforce.
The Multi-Billion Dollar Trigger
The roots of the current backlash trace back to late 2022, when the U.S. Transportation Command awarded FedEx and two other firms a federal contract worth approximately $2.24 billion.
This contract, part of the Next Generation Delivery Service-2 initiative, tasked FedEx with managing package deliveries for various government agencies through 2026, with potential extensions to 2030.
Critically, critics point out that following the receipt of this massive taxpayer-funded contract, FedEx’s use of the H-1B program surged.
Data from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) reveals that while FedEx had roughly two dozen approved H-1B workers in 2022, that number ballooned to approximately 500 by 2025.
Layoffs vs. H-1B Surge
The primary source of public anger is the timing of these hires. In 2024 and 2025, while the company was filing for hundreds of specialized visas, it was also issuing Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) letters across the United States.
Notable cuts included:
- Texas: Over 1,200 positions eliminated across facilities in Coppell, Fort Worth, Garland, and Plano.
- Tennessee: Layoffs affecting hundreds of IT and operations staff at the Memphis headquarters.
- National Impact: Further closures and staff reductions reported in New York, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky.
Social media users and labor advocates have noted that many H-1B applications—for roles such as commercial analysts and technical engineers with salaries between $100,000 and $115,000—were for locations where American staff had recently been let go.
FedEx Leadership Under the Lens
FedEx CEO Rajesh “Raj” Subramaniam, who took the helm in 2022, has become a focal point for the criticism.
Some online commentators have accused the Indian-origin CEO of “nepotism” and prioritizing global talent over domestic workers.
High-profile political figures, including Vice President JD Vance, have weighed in on the broader trend, urging corporations to “try hiring Americans” before looking abroad.
The company has also faced backlash for allegedly forcing departing American employees to train their foreign replacements as a condition of their severance—a practice that has become a flashpoint for right-wing media and GOP commentators.
The Defense by FedEx
FedEx has defended its strategy, stating that hiring decisions are based strictly on “business requirements and specialized skill sets.”
A company spokesperson clarified that many of the layoffs resulted from the end of specific customer contracts or the closure of redundant facilities, whereas H-1B hires are typically for high-level technical roles for which domestic talent is reportedly scarce.
Sources within the company also suggest that the increase in visa numbers is partly due to the consolidation of various corporate entities under a single federal filing system.
Despite these explanations, the optics of replacing domestic labor with visa holders after securing a multi-billion dollar government contract have left FedEx in the middle of a heated “America First” labor debate.
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