Cutting whole teams: Insiders expose Meta plan to fire thousands

Mass job cuts could come within days for US tech giant Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, with insiders revealing lists of expendable workers are being compiled.

Thousands of Meta workers could be laid off as soon as this week, according to insiders at the company, which owns social media platforms Facebook and Instagram.

Bloomberg reports US-based Meta Platforms Inc, the world’s largest social networking company, is planning another round of job cuts following a 13 per cent slashing of its workforce in November 2022, when 11,000 workers lost their jobs.

Dubbing 2023 the “year of efficiency”, CEO Mark Zuckerberg is also reportedly working to “flatten” the organisation by making managerial roles redundant and cutting whole teams that are viewed as non-essential.

But inside sources told Bloomberg the potentially imminent cuts are being driven by financial targets rather than “flattening” efforts.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is preparing to take parental leave. Picture: Kevin Dietsch

The sources also said the company had asked directors and vice presidents to compile lists of expendable employees, with lay-offs coming within the next week.

Mr Zuckerberg is currently planning to take parental leave for the birth of his third child, which sources said could be any day now, and the job cuts are hoped to be finalised before that happens.

The mass cuts in November surprised the 13 per cent of its then 87,000-strong workforce who were let go.

Facebook owner Meta cut 11,000 staff in November 2022. Picture: Josh Edelson

The company is trying to weather a turbulent period during which its social media properties are being squeezed by competition from TikTok.

Meta’s pivot to developing its Metaverse technology has also sapped company resources while failing to yield a return on its investment.

Since the start of the year, shares of Meta, trading at $A280.12 at the time of publication, have rebounded, rising by some 54 per cent.

The Meta Verified service is a new revenue stream. Picture: William West/AFP

However, the expected job cuts come less than a month as the tech giant announced a new revenue channel.

In February, Meta said it would launch a paid subscription service, Meta Verified, allowing Facebook and Instagram users to pay $A21.80 a month to verify their accounts.

At the time, Mr Zuckerberg said: “Get a blue badge, get extra impersonation protection against accounts claiming to be you and get direct access to customer support.”

Meta Verified accounts are also promised features including increased visibility and reach, as well as improving their prominence.

– with the New York Post