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Meta, the company that owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has announced that it will cut 10,000 jobs. This is the second series of mass redundancies from the tech giant, following the layoff of 11,000 employees in November 2022. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg described the cuts as "tough" and part of a "year of efficiency". In addition to the 10,000 jobs being lost, 5,000 open roles at the company will be left unfilled.
Zuckerberg explained in a memo to staff that the company had experienced a "humbling wake-up call" in 2022 due to a slowdown in revenue, which he attributed to factors such as higher interest rates in the US, global geopolitical instability, and increased regulation. He added that the company should prepare itself for the possibility that this economic reality will continue for years.
The tech industry has seen many job cuts this year, with layoffs.fyi reporting over 128,000 job losses so far. Meta will announce restructurings and layoffs in its tech groups in late April 2023 and business groups in late May 2023, with some changes expected to continue through to the end of the year.
Zuckerberg said that the recruitment team would be the first to be informed of the cuts, with other teams to follow later. He also noted that there would be no new hires until the restructuring was complete and that the company aimed to become "flatter" by removing multiple layers of management.
The CEO dedicated a section of the memo to hybrid work, stating that software engineers who joined Meta in-person performed better than those who joined remotely. He encouraged staff to find more opportunities to work with their colleagues in person to build necessary connections and work more effectively.
