Meta, the parent company of Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram, had postponed finishing the budgets of numerous departments in preparation for a new wave of layoffs.
"Further cuts are expected around March, as the company is currently going through performance reviews of staff, three current and former employees said," as per the story published by the Financial Times on Saturday, Feb. 11.
In November 2022, Meta had the greatest layoffs in its history, dismissing over 11,000 employees, roughly 13% of its workforce. Apparently, the bad news for the company is far from done.
Additional Layoffs on the Horizon
According to Forbes, the latest report shows that poor morale has set in due to picking those who could be laid off, which is having an effect on business operations. Managers still do not know how big their teams will be in the next month, delaying the finalization of annual budgets that would normally be done by now.
The layoffs and lack of clarity have left a sour taste in the mouths of three workers, who stated the staff have lost motivation as a result.
Two anonymous Meta workers also told the Financial Times that there had been a lack of transparency around finances and projected headcount in recent weeks.
According to the latest claim, workers have complained that "zero work" is being done since supervisors have been unable to plan their upcoming responsibilities.
Another worker complained to the Financial Times that this year is beginning with a lot of people being paid to do nothing.
Employees assert that this year has been everything but the "year of efficiency," as promised by CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg during the company's last earnings call.
Zuckerberg stated that the "year of efficiency" will encompass 2023, with expected costs of between $89 billion and $95 billion.
Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve's efforts to combat inflation by increasing interest rates have had a knock-on effect on the economy, causing layoffs at many companies, not only Meta.
Some 300 employees at Amazon's Zappos were let go last month, and Microsoft announced more layoffs on Thursday, Feb. 9, among many others in the technology industry.
See Also: Facebook Reaches 2 Billion Daily Active Users, Meta Reports
The Metaverse Initiative
Following the announcement of massive layoffs at Meta, the company's shares surged on Wall Street. But there is still a lot of mystery around the future of the social media titan.
Reportedly, Zuckerberg struggles with his intentions to expose users to the Metaverse, a vaguely defined virtual world that nobody specifically asked for.
Forbes said getting people to utilize something that is not enjoyable is a challenge, and right now, the Metaverse does not appear like much fun.
See Also: Meta: Ex-President Donald Trump's Facebook, Instagram Accounts Now Reinstated-No Posts Yet
