{"id":47196,"date":"2025-02-12T05:50:17","date_gmt":"2025-02-12T05:50:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/meta-layoffs-workers-challenge-zuckerbergs-low-performer-justification\/"},"modified":"2025-02-12T05:50:17","modified_gmt":"2025-02-12T05:50:17","slug":"meta-layoffs-workers-challenge-zuckerbergs-low-performer-justification","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/meta-layoffs-workers-challenge-zuckerbergs-low-performer-justification\/","title":{"rendered":"Meta layoffs: workers challenge Zuckerberg\u2019s \u2018low performer\u2019 justification"},"content":{"rendered":"

(Originally posted on : Invezz )<\/b>
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Following Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s mid-January warning to employees about raising performance standards and cutting 5% of the workforce, recent layoffs impacting approximately 3,600 workers have generated controversy. <\/p>\n

Some affected employees are challenging the company’s assertion that the cuts solely targeted low performers, claiming they received favorable performance reviews.<\/p>\n

Zuckerberg’s warning: raising the bar on performance<\/h2>\n

In an internal memo obtained by Bloomberg, Zuckerberg stated the plan to \u201cmanage out people who aren\u2019t meeting expectations over the course of a year,\u201d and \u201cdo more extensive performance-based cuts during this cycle.\u201d <\/p>\n

At the time, Zuckerberg made it sound as if it would just be low performers who would be affected by the layoffs.<\/p>\n

However, some workers who claim they received favorable performance reviews and were otherwise not the lowest performers have gotten caught up in the cuts, which began Monday and impacted about 3,600 workers.<\/p>\n

One former Meta employee, Kaila Curry, posted on LinkedIn that she was laid off despite receiving an “exceeds expectations” rating on her midyear review. <\/p>\n

“I frequently asked for feedback and was always told I was doing a good job,” Curry wrote. <\/p>\n

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I was never placed on a PIP [performance improvement plan], never given corrective feedback, and never properly mentored or provided clear expectations. I simply put in the work\u2026 I am not a low performer.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Another laid-off ex-Meta employee, LinkedIn user Steven S., a former product designer for Instagram, claimed the company’s assertion it’s cutting the dead wood is \u201cflat-out wrong,\u201d noting that the “label is misleading, and for many of us, it\u2019s flat-out wrong.\u201d <\/p>\n

While this user didn\u2019t mention or show what rating he received on the performance review.<\/p>\n

Meta’s definition of “low performer”: unclear metrics<\/h2>\n

However, it\u2019s unclear what Meta qualifies as a \u201clow performer.\u201d <\/p>\n

The company didn\u2019t immediately respond to Fortune\u2019s request for comment.<\/p>\n

Business Insider also spoke with several Meta employees who had been affected by the layoffs and spoke on the condition of anonymity. <\/p>\n

They said they had received an \u201cat or above expectations\u201d rating on their 2024 assessments, which would rank them as mid-tier employees at Meta, not low performers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe hardest part is Meta publicly stating they\u2019re cutting low performers, so it feels like we have the scarlet letter on our backs,\u201d one employee told Business Insider. <\/p>\n

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People need to know we\u2019re not underperformers.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Criticism of Meta’s messaging<\/h2>\n

Diane Brady, executive director of Fortune Live Media, criticized Zuckerberg\u2019s labeling of Meta\u2019s most recently laid-off employees as low-performing.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s something to be said for letting people leave with their dignity intact rather than branding them as subpar performers,\u201d Brady wrote in her CEO Daily newsletter on Tuesday. <\/p>\n

\u201cCompanies that celebrate and support former employees tend to create more fans than foes.\u201d<\/p>\n

A ‘year of efficiency’<\/h2>\n

These layoffs follow Zuckerberg\u2019s declared “year of efficiency” in 2023, which involved eliminating 10,000 jobs. <\/p>\n

While Zuckerberg insisted the latest round of layoffs would exclusively impact the lowest-performing employees, the company has simultaneously expedited hiring for machine-learning engineers, as reported by Reuters, reflecting a strategic focus on AI development.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom a hiring standpoint, our focus continues to be on adding technical talent to support our strategic priorities,\u201d Susan Li, Meta\u2019s chief financial officer, said during a January 29 call with investors.<\/p>\n

For now, affected Meta employees will continue to question why they were let go.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe I \u2018lacked masculine energy\u2018 (to quote Mark Zuckerberg himself),\u201d Curry wrote. \u201cWho knows?\u201d<\/p>\n

The post Meta layoffs: workers challenge Zuckerberg’s ‘low performer’ justification<\/a> appeared first on Invezz<\/a><\/p>\n

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(Originally posted on : Invezz ) Following Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s mid-January warning to employees about raising performance standards and cutting 5% of the workforce, recent layoffs impacting approximately 3,600 workers have generated controversy. Some affected employees are challenging the company’s assertion that the cuts solely targeted low performers, claiming they received favorable performance reviews. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3947362378,"featured_media":47197,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[39],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47196"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3947362378"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47196"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47196\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47197"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47196"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47196"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}