Meta Platforms, the parent company of popular digital platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has implemented a series of job cuts as part of its three-phase layoff plan announced in March. These cuts aim to eliminate a total of 10,000 positions across various business and operational units.
Many affected employees, including those working in marketing, site security, enterprise engineering, program management, content strategy, and corporate communications, took to LinkedIn to publicly share news of their layoffs. The impact of the cuts extended to Meta’s units focused on privacy and integrity as well, as mentioned in the LinkedIn posts.
Earlier this year, Meta made headlines by becoming the first major technology company to announce a second round of substantial layoffs, following the dismissal of over 11,000 employees in the previous autumn. These cuts brought the company’s headcount back to its approximate mid-2021 level, effectively reversing the expansion that had doubled its workforce since 2020.
In March, Meta’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, stated that the majority of the second round layoffs would occur in three stages over several months, primarily concluding in May. However, he mentioned the possibility of additional smaller rounds taking place afterward.
The job cuts have primarily impacted non-engineering roles, underscoring the digital tech company’s emphasis on engineering personnel. Zuckerberg has expressed a commitment to restructuring business teams significantly and achieving a more balanced ratio of engineers to other roles, Reuters news report said.
Even within the technology teams, non-engineering positions such as content design and user experience research have been disproportionately affected, as revealed during a company town hall held after the previous round of layoffs in April.
During the town hall, Zuckerberg disclosed that around 4,000 employees had lost their jobs in April, following a smaller reduction in recruiting teams in March.
Furthermore, Meta recently announced that approximately 490 employees, accounting for nearly 20 percent of its Irish workforce, would likely be impacted by the latest round of cuts at its international headquarters in Dublin. In addition, two prominent executives in India, Avinash Pant (director of marketing) and Saket Jha Saurabh (director and head of media partnerships), were also let go.
These layoffs by Meta come after months of dwindling revenue growth, which can be attributed to increased inflation and a decline in digital advertising due to the e-commerce boom during the pandemic.
Moreover, Meta has been investing billions of dollars in its Reality Labs unit, which focuses on the development of the metaverse, and in improving its infrastructure to support artificial intelligence initiatives. However, these endeavors have resulted in substantial financial losses, with Reality Labs alone reporting a loss of $13.7 billion in 2022.
