Meta warned a year ago that its employees should expect lay-offs, and they are now starting to hit.
News reports are circulating of small cuts that signal how the company is reorganizing in what the company has admitted is a “time of great uncertainty.”
In March last year, the company confirmed that there would be 10,000 more job losses, and before the roll-out of these mass layoffs was complete, it admitted even more jobs were under threat in what has been an incredibly tumultuous two years for Meta employees.
Employees Post That They Have Lost Jobs
The job losses seem to be across the board with employees from WhatsApp, Instagram, and Reality Labs all posting that they have been let go.
The Verge adds that among them is Jane Manchun Wong, “who gained notoriety for reporting on unannounced features coming to apps” and then joined the Threads team.
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Playing Down Layoffs
Meta spokesperson, Dave Arnold, shared in a statement to the press that the changes will impact “a few teams at Meta” and the changes will “ensure resources are aligned with their long-term strategic goals and location strategy.”
“This includes moving some teams to different locations and moving some employees to different roles. In situations like this when a role is eliminated, we work hard to find other opportunities for impacted employees.” – Dave Arnold, Meta spokesperson
Axe Starts to Fall at Intel
While Meta staff are nervously waiting for emails, the job losses threatened at Intel have also started to happen. Staff have had a torturous wait on lay-offs, which they knew would start this month.
Intel announced a massive layoff of 15,000 employees back on August 1st, and then in September said it was “more than halfway to our workforce reduction target.”
“These are the most difficult decisions we ever make, and we are treating people with care and respect. These changes support our strategy to become a leaner, simpler and more agile company as we position Intel for long-term sustainable growth.” – Addy Burr, Intel spokesperson
While neither company has announced more cuts in recent weeks, there will be potentially thousands of employees now leaving Intel and Meta. These add to the thousands who have already been let go from the biggest names in tech in three years that have left the industry reeling.