Image source, Getty Images
Meta, the company that owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, announced it will cut 131% of its workforce.
In total, 11,000 employees will be laid off from its global payroll of 87,000 people.
In a statement, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the cuts were "some of the hardest changes we've made in Meta's history."
"I know this is difficult for everyone, and I feel especially sorry for those affected," he wrote in a statement.
Zuckerberg attributed the layoffs to the slowdown of the economy, increased competition and the decline in advertising revenue, although he took full responsibility for the situation.
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The news follows significant layoffs at Twitter, which cut nearly half its workforce, and at other tech companies like Microsoft.
Reuters reported that Zuckerberg is one of many executives who have sounded the alarm about a possible recession in the US economy, but the news agency added that some of the company's problems have been self-inflicted, such as its risky bet on the virtual world, or metaverse.
It's the second round of layoffs at major tech companies in a week, but the tone of Meta's statement was very different from Elon Musk's upbeat defense of his decision to cut half of Twitter's workforce on Friday.
While Musk said the company had no choice because it was losing millions of dollars every day, Mark Zuckerberg's statement was very contrite. He took responsibility, he said, and expressed regret.
If you know Zuckerberg, you'll know this is uncharacteristic: he's not known for being a "people person" and his focus is often on work. He no longer has his former COO, Sheryl Sandberg, on his side to help calm the waters.
He's literally betting his own dollars, as well as his company's, on creating the metaverse, a virtual world where he believes we will all spend our work and leisure time in the future.
It could take five or 10 years for this to come to fruition. If he maintains his position and is right, Meta will recover and, he hopes, become the king of the new generation of the internet.
Zuckerberg noted that the company would now focus on high-priority growth areas, such as artificial intelligence, advertising, and "our long-term vision for the metaverse."
Meta will also reduce costs in other areas, including reducing its spending on buildings and offices and increasing the use of hot desking.
Image source, Getty Images
Affected Meta employees will receive an email soon, he said, and will have the opportunity to ask questions.
US employees will receive compensation Severance pay equivalent to 16 weeks of pay plus one week for each year worked. Additional benefits will also include continued family health insurance for six months.
Support outside the U.S. will be similar, but there will be a separate termination process to account for local labor laws.
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