Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:FB) is planning another round of mass layoffs this week as part of cost-cutting measures taken under chief executive Mark Zuckerberg’s “year of efficiency”.
Employees in business-focussed roles are expected to be affected by the cuts, which were warned of by the tech giant’s global affairs president Nick Clegg last week, Vox reported.
“It’s just a time of great anxiety and uncertainty,” Clegg told employees in a meeting.
“I wish I could have some easy way of providing solace or comfort. It is uncertain. And actually, it’s really increased my admiration for the way that everyone [is] displaying such resilience and professionalism.”
Facebook and Instagram owner Meta has already moved to cut 26,000 roles since November, with the latest round hitting 4,000 staff in the company’s technology wing in April.
Some 86,000 people were employed by Meta in late 2022, which, alongside Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Google owner Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG), has moved to cut costs since going on a hiring spree during a pandemic-driven boom in online use.
Globally, almost 200,000 tech sector workers have faced job losses so far this year, already exceeding the near-165,000 layoffs recorded in 2022 by tracker Layoffs.fyi.
Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives previously likened tech sector cuts to “a rip the band-aid off moment,” as economic uncertainty threatens to bite.