New Lyft CEO David Risher announces plans to lay off hundreds of workers

The ride-hailing service Lyft is preparing to lay off hundreds of employees just days after its new CEO, David Risher, began steering the company with an eye toward driving down costs to help bring its fares more in line with its biggest rival, Uber.

The note did not specify how many people would be jettisoned, but the Wall Street Journal reported that at least 1,200 employees will be laid off. The report cited unidentified people familiar with the cost-cutting plans.

San Francisco-based Lyft did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Risher, who had been a Lyft board member before being recruited to replace co-founder Logan Green, cited expense control as one of his top priorities during an interview with the Associated Press shortly after his hiring was announced.

Lyft intends to start notifying employees who will be laid off on Thursday when the company plans to close its offices.

It will mark the second round of recent job cuts for Lyft after shedding 700 workers last year.

Recurring waves of layoffs are emerging as a new phenomenon in the tech industry, reversing more than a decade of mostly unbridled growth.