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Meta has begun a round of layoffs impacting employees across WhatsApp, Instagram, Reality Labs, and other departments, according to a report from the Verge.
Speaking to people familiar with the matter, the Verge broke the news Wednesday, noting that the layoffs appear to be smaller cuts across several teams rather than mass job cuts. On the same day, news also broke that several employees were fired after an HR investigation found they had misused a $25 meal perk to purchase home goods.
Meta has not confirmed exactly how many employees have been affected by the layoffs, nor specified what departments are affected.
But the company did dispute claims made on social media by users who said they worked in Meta’s Threads, recruiting, and legal operations teams and had been affected by the layoffs. A Meta spokesperson told TechCrunch that these teams are not impacted by job cuts.
Why is Meta laying off employees?
According to the tech giant, the layoffs are coming as the company attempts to reorganize teams more closely around current business priorities.
“Today, a few teams at Meta are making changes to ensure resources are aligned with their long-term strategic goals and location strategy,” a company spokesperson stated.
Not all employees affected by the reorganization will lose their jobs.
“This includes moving some teams to different locations, and moving some employees to different roles,” the spokesperson added. “In situations like this when a role is eliminated, we work hard to find other opportunities for impacted employees.”
Some high-profile Meta employees have confirmed they were affected by the layoffs, including Machun Wong, a prominent software engineer.
“I’m still trying to process this but I’m informed that my role at Meta has been impacted,” Wong posted on her social media profiles. “Thank you to everyone, especially my Threads and Instagram teammates, for my wild journey at Meta.”
Meta most recently made job cuts to its Reality Labs division in June. Its last substantial round of layoffs came in 2023 when CEO Mark Zuckerberg made 10,000 job cuts during his “year of efficiency.” It followed layoffs for 11,000 employees across 2022.
Despite Meta’s promise to find alternative roles for affected staff, some employees have criticized Meta and Zuckerberg for rapid hiring in some divisions while cutting headcount in other teams.
Layoffs arrive on same day as employees are fired over meal perk misuse
While Meta has begun layoffs across departments, some employees were also recently fired over the misuse of a company perk.
Over two dozen employees at Meta’s Los Angeles office were accused of using a $25 meal credit to purchase items including wine glasses, toothpaste, and acne pads.
Meta’s corporate policy states the credits are only to be used for the purchase of food and beverages.
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"We take these violations seriously and have taken appropriate action to uphold our standards," a spokesperson for Meta said.
An investigation run by Meta’s HR team revealed some employees opted to use their credit to send food home, or to use it for alternative purchases on days they did not need the stipend.
One individual claiming to have misused the policy wrote on the anonymous platform Blind: “On days where I would not be eating at the office, like if my husband was cooking or if I was grabbing dinner with friends, I figured I ought not to waste the dinner credit.”
The employee described the HR investigation as “almost surreal,” stating they admitted their misdemeanor and subsequently lost their job.
According to the Financial Times, only employees who were consistent offenders were fired, while others who only occasionally broke Meta’s policy escaped with a warning.
