Meta Begins 8,000 Job Cuts, Singapore Employees Get Heartbreaking 4 AM Layoff Email

Meta has started a significant new wave of job cuts that will impact almost 10 percent of the company’s global staff, which is estimated to include approximately 8,000 employees, as the company’s AI efforts ramp up. A Bloomberg report says the job cuts began in Singapore, with the employees who were affected saying they received emails notifying them of their termination around 4 AM local time (1:30 AM IST). Pre restructuring, Meta had over 78,000 employees across the globe. The latest cut is part of a series of moves the company has rolled out to cut costs as it battles a slew of competitors including Google and OpenAI with AI investments. This most recent cut is part of a series of steps the company has taken to cut costs as it attempts to become more competitive with rivals like OpenAI and Google.

Meta To Restructure And Relocate Workers?

In addition to the job cuts, Meta is also rumored to be restructuring its workforce and relocating almost 7,000 workers to new teams dedicated to AI. In an internal memo, Chief People Officer Janelle Gale indicated that the company desires to build flatter organization designs that are composed of smaller and more agile teams. About 6,000 positions are already closed as part of the restructuring, with the engineering and product divisions expected to be hardest hit.

Work From Home On The Day Of Layoff

Staff in the United States, Britain and elsewhere were also reportedly told to work from home on the day of the announcement of layoffs, with the wordings of the notification points to be made in several stages depending on time zones.

Were Workers Already Prepared For The Job Cut?

The job cuts reportedly have left staff members feeling worried and demoralized, particularly following leaked details about the planned job cuts last month. Some reports suggested that employees were already, kind of, preparing for the announcement by grabbing office supplies and small accessories before the layoffs. At the same time, Meta has also annoyed its own staff by allegedly rolling out software that watches employee mouse movement and typing, as it tries to sharpen its AI abilities. Reportedly, it is estimated that more than 1,000 workers signed a petition against this monitoring setup, because of privacy worries and employment concerns, too.

Why Are Big Companies Cutting Jobs?

The restructuring follows a pattern being seen by a number of companies around the world that are looking to cut down on employees and focus on investing in AI. Recently, Meta stated that it will spend $125 billion to $145 billion this year, the majority of which will go toward AI infrastructure and research. Major tech firms have also made big workforce reductions in the past few months. Just recently, Cisco announced thousands of job cuts and Microsoft and Amazon have also cut down on staff or provided voluntary departures amidst the industry’s swift transition towards an AI powered operation.

Also Read: Starbucks Layoffs: Coffee Chain Cuts Hundreds Of Jobs In US Amid Major Restructuring Drive