Meta Platforms (META, Financial) is planning to cut around 5% of its workforce as the company focuses on the lowest performing employees, reported on 14 Jan. CEO Mark Zuckerberg communicated the strategic decision in an internal memo posted Tuesday on Meta's Workplace forum. “It's going to be an intense year" — an intense year for Facebook, Zuckerberg said, adding that the company is focused on accelerating operational efficiency.
The 5% decrease shall cut almost 3,600 positions, which comprises more than 72,000 employees, according to the latest quarterly report of the company. February 10 will serve as a notice date to impacted employees, and the severance packages, where appropriate, will be the same as those offered in the past during layoffs. After Meta cut nearly a quarter of its workforce through massive layoffs in 2022 and 2023, the move comes.
With Meta's decision, it's in keeping with broader industry trends of tech companies furloughing workers to save costs amidst a changing economic reality. That news follows other big Meta changes, including its decision to scrap its third-party fact check program in favour of a 'Community Notes' model, as per Elon Musk's platform, X.
As investigations into the treatment of prominent users on Meta platforms proceed, Zuckerberg has focused on streamlining policies and re-establishing freedom of expression on Meta's own platforms — a period in which he sees a “tipping point” in the cultural landscape. The company, however, has also recently taken steps to prioritize spending on initiatives seeking to better tie the business to the approaching U.S. administration as a way of setting a course toward embracing flip political turmoil.
