Meta dismisses workers for using their meal allowances on personal purchases such as acne treatments and wine glasses.
Many of the main headquarters for the influential tech company offer lavish dining services to reward employees with meals as a benefit. Meta's two-year-old office adjacent to New York City's Penn Station, for instance, boasts a decadent cafeteria that resembles an upscale mall food court, offering multiple food stalls for staff to enjoy at no cost.
However, employees at smaller offices devoid of food services receive meal allowances – $20 for breakfast and $25 per meal for lunch and dinner – enabling them to order food deliveries while on the clock.
These meal allowances were intended for employees to consume during their work hours, which often span numerous meals within a day, a common occurrence in the technological sphere.
An unnamed source revealed that some LA-based workers exploited these meal funds by purchasing non-food items or by having meals delivered to their homes instead.
Meta disclosed that the median annual total compensation for individual employees, excluding CEO Mark Zuckerberg, amounted to $379,050, as mentioned in a recent financial report.
The terminations, which occurred last week, were initialized by the media outlet Financial Times.
The news about the layoffs emerged as Meta confirmed on Thursday that a restructuring process was underway, resulting in redundancies across the company.
Meta spokesperson Tracy Clayton released a statement saying, "Today, various teams at Meta are making adjustments to ensure resources align with their long-term strategic objectives and location strategy. This includes relocating certain teams and reassigning employees to different roles. In situations like this, we strive to identify alternative opportunities for affected employees."
Meta refused to disclose the exact number of employees dismissed.
The downsizing affected Instagram, WhatsApp, Facebook, and Reality Labs, the division responsible for Meta's virtual reality and metaverse initiatives.
Among the laid-off personnel was Jane Manchun Wong, a renowned security researcher known for anticipating upcoming social media features, such as a Facebook resume feature and a tool on the platform previously known as Twitter that enabled users to hide replies to their tweets. Wong was recruited by Meta in June 2023 to join the Instagram and Threads team.
Meta cut over 20,000 workers in 2022 during multiple rounds of dismissals, seeking to remediate a year of declining revenues and stagnating user growth, a period dubbed by Zuckerberg as Meta's "year of efficiency." Meta's stock (META) has witnessed a significant increase of around 80% since this time last year.
Despite the company-wide restructuring and layoffs affecting various departments, Meta continues to invest in its tech-focused ventures, such as virtual reality and metaverse initiatives. To support these projects, the company still allocates substantial resources in the tech sector.
To maintain a competitive edge in the tech industry, Meta often provides its employees with access to the latest business technologies and tools.
