Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp’s parent company Meta have confirmed a huge round of layoffs, amounting to 13% of its workforce.
“I want to take accountability for these decisions and for how we got here,” CEO and co-founder Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a statement. “I know this is tough for everyone, and I’m especially sorry to those impacted.”
The news comes as companies from across the technological spectrum have announced huge swathes of redundancies in recent months, with Twitter laying off some half of its 7,500 workforces (now asking some employees to come back) in the wake of Elon Musk’s arrival at the helm, while Stripe last week revealed plans to cut its headcount by 14%.
Meta’s current headcount equates to around 87,000 around the world, meaning that 11,000 people will be leaving Meta. According to Zuckerberg, each U.S.-based employee will receive 16 weeks of severance pay, plus two extra weeks for each year of service. So for example, someone who has worked at Meta for four years will effectively get six months to pay.
On top of that, Meta said that workers will also be paid for all remaining unused time off and receive stock-based compensation that was vesting through November 15. Additionally, health insurance for employees and their families will be offered for six months.
