October 17th 2024.
According to a source familiar with the company, Meta recently let go of approximately two dozen employees at its Los Angeles office. The reason? These employees were misusing their company meal credits for personal items like laundry detergent, wine glasses, and even acne treatment pads. This news was confirmed by a source who is knowledgeable about the inner workings of the company.
As with many corporate offices, Meta's LA location offers its employees an array of food services as a perk. Their office near New York City's Penn Station, for instance, boasts a cafeteria that resembles a high-end food court, complete with various stalls that are all free for employees. However, for smaller offices without such amenities, Meta provides meal vouchers to its employees. These vouchers, which are worth $20 for breakfast and $25 each for lunch and dinner, allow employees to order food to be delivered to the office while they're working.
The intention behind these meal vouchers is for employees to have a meal while they're on the job, especially since tech industry workers are known for their long hours. Unfortunately, an internal investigation revealed that some of the LA-based employees were using these funds to purchase non-food items or even having meals delivered to their homes instead. This discovery led to the recent firings.
It's worth noting that Meta has a median annual compensation of $379,050 for individual employees, as stated in a regulatory filing earlier this year. Despite this, the company still provides meal vouchers for its employees, showing that it values their well-being and wants to make sure they have sustenance during their long work hours.
The news of these firings was first reported by the Financial Times, and it comes at a time when Meta is undergoing a series of restructurings. In fact, the company recently announced that it was laying off employees across various departments. According to Meta spokesperson Tracy Clayton, these changes are being made to ensure that resources are aligned with the company's long-term strategic goals and location strategy. This includes moving some teams to different locations and shifting some employees to different roles. However, the company does strive to find other opportunities for those who are impacted by these changes.
Unfortunately, Meta did not disclose the exact number of employees who were laid off in this recent round of cuts. The cuts were made across various departments, including Instagram, WhatsApp, Facebook, and Reality Labs, which is responsible for Meta's virtual reality and metaverse efforts. Among those who were let go was Jane Manchun Wong, a notable security researcher who gained recognition in the tech world for predicting new features on social media platforms before she was hired by Meta in 2023. She was part of the Instagram and Threads team.
Last year, Meta underwent a series of layoffs that affected over 20,000 employees. These cuts were made in an effort to turn around a year of declining revenue and stagnant user growth, which CEO Mark Zuckerberg referred to as the company's "year of efficiency." Despite this, Meta's shares have increased by nearly 80% since last year, showing that the company is still thriving despite these challenges.
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