Update for Laid Off Employees

Unfortunately I was a part of the culling. Here's what them email I got sent read:

Hello person we just fu---d,

Earlier today, Mark announced that we’ve made the hard, but necessary, decision to lay off 13% of the company—unfortunately, you’ve been included in this layoff.

First and foremost, we want you to know that you have our deepest gratitude for all you’ve contributed to Meta. You’ve been an important part of the company’s journey. We know that receiving this information by email is difficult. After exploring a number of other options, we felt that given the number of people impacted, sharing this news as quickly as possible would be better than waiting hours or days to hear about what this means for you from a live conversation. But, we understand that speaking to someone may also be important to you. Please join one of the information sessions tomorrow (details below) and if you have specific questions after that, contact us at peeps@fb.com and someone will be in touch as soon as possible.

Your benefits and compensation

You will continue to receive pay, benefits and any available stock vesting through your official last date of employment, which can be found in the attached Notification Letter. This means you’ll receive your next equity vest on November 15, 2022, if you have any. You also do not need to do any additional work for Meta from this point forward and will be paid out your remaining PTO.

A Separation Agreement will be sent to your personal email address later today with full details of your individual package. If you sign the Separation Agreement, you will receive additional severance pay based on your length of service, and we will pay COBRA (health insurance) premiums for you and your family if they are dependents on your current plan. To support you in your job search, you will also have access to three months of external job search assistance.

Immigration

We know this is especially difficult for those of you whose visa and work authorization is sponsored by Meta. The attached immigration guidance has general information to help address your immediate questions. If you need more help, please reach out to immigration@fb.com where there are specialists that can provide additional guidance based on your personal circumstances.

Saying goodbye to friends and colleagues

We need to cut access to most internal systems immediately for legal and security reasons. To give everyone the opportunity to say goodbye to friends and colleagues, you’ll continue to have access to your Meta email until 5:00 pm PT today to send and receive messages internally.

We’re asking everyone to stay home today, so please don’t come into the office to say goodbye in person. As part of the internal system cut, you no longer have badge access to Meta offices. If you have personal items at your desk, you can find instructions about how to retrieve them in the attached FAQ document.

Getting more information

We know this is a lot to process, so we’re hosting two optional information sessions to cover pay, benefits, and immigration or relocation considerations. You can access them at the following links:

US Informational Session #1: Thursday, Nov 10, 2022 @ 11:00 am - 12:00 pm PT
US Informational Session #2: Thursday, Nov 10, 2022 @ 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm PT

If you still have questions after these sessions or need to speak with someone 1:1, please contact peeps@fb.com and we’ll put you in touch with someone who can help as soon as possible.

Next steps

Read the attached information sheet: It provides guidance on how to navigate the next few weeks.

Look out for your Separation Agreement: Look for a message in your personal email from “Meta Leadership Team” later today and review your Separation Agreement as soon as possible. You will need to sign it no later than five business days after your official last day of employment to receive your severance package. If you don’t receive your Separation Agreement within 24 hours, please reach out to peeps@fb.com ASAP. We want to make sure we have an accurate personal email address for you and can remain in contact throughout this process.

Remove personal documents from your computer: We will begin the process of locking your computer at 11pm local time today. Per instruction from Legal, you may copy purely personal information but not delete from Meta devices and systems. You must not move, alter, copy or delete any Meta or work-related documents, data, or communications.

Return your Meta assets: You will shortly receive a message to your personal email address with instructions for returning your Meta assets (e.g. phone, tablet, computer, etc.). You can continue to use your work-issued phone until November 21.

Finally, we want to say again that we’re grateful for all your contributions and are sad to have to say goodbye. Your impact at Meta has been an important part of our story.

Sincerely,

Meta’s Leadership Team

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13 replies (most recent on top)

My first layoff floored me - somebody else - NOT ME - di-ked hard with my livliehood.
But I was hired reasonably quickly and learned sh-t happens move on not the end of life.

My 2nd layoff wasn't quite the "I know not to worry" as I had wife and kids - but still I had confidence. Took and extra month (3) due to a minor downturn then - but my skills were in demand (just nichy).

My brother in law is a long time perma-temp - by choice. He's frequently laid off / contract cancelled / etc - due to company focus, investment, etc - far more than just the IRS perma-temp "employee" categorization laws. In fact right now his 2nd stint at Meta - back after just a couple years.

So just a matter of course and not unexpected.

Consider also for this - Zuk overtly saying "I fu---d up" not "the laid off folks fu---d up".
A bit tougher when companies do the sub 5% trims - which often moreso the dead weight.

For those being laid off for the first time... I can tell you this, its just part of the silicon valley tech game; if you stay in this business long enough, there's a very good chance it will happen to you no matter how good of an employee you are. It's not a stain on your resume. I was a hiring manager in silicon valley for 30 years and I laid off a LOT of good engineers in my day, its a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time in many cases. So, enjoy part of your severance to just rest and be well, then get back up on the horse.

"Per instruction from Legal, you may copy purely personal information but not delete from Meta devices and systems."

Sounds like a threat. Why can't you delete your own personal files?

Wonder how the fact checkers will handle this??

This is an awesome package. Atleast for folks with no immigration issues.
Meta doing the right thing

Can we use the gym for the next 4 months? How about the free breakfast/lunch.
My email is still working though, so looks like they did not cut me but sent that email to me by accident.

Hello person we just fu---d,

Did they really write that?

Congratulations, you are free from the Meta shackles.
Enjoy your vacation.

Thank you for sharing the email, and my condolences on being let go. Better days are head, always are! As to the letter itself, FB is being surprisingly fair and even generous (paying COBRA bennies, etc), at least so far as layoffs usually go. How much will actually be given and with what conditions is another story, make sure to carefully read everything. Look at it from the point of view of an HR Dept trying to avoid bad press and lawsuits, and expect them to wriggle out of any promises they can. However, do take advantage of these severance terms to start your job search with a clear mind and no financial worries (for a while). Finding a new job is now your full-time job, so do it well! But take some time to relax too, enjoy family, friends - breathe! Remember, you are in charge of You Inc., so run that little company like the best in the world, you'll be grand! All the best.

I have in two such layoffs, first week felt like sh-t, starting from the 2nd is when I picked things up and found a job 2 weeks later, this was during the core of COVID downturn and I didn't even have the brand value that meta provides. Just my experience if it helps

I am so sorry. I’ve been laid off before and it’s tough. If you’re eligible you want to open a case with unemployment agency immediately - they take awhile to process requests, but with these many layoffs it will be longer. Get your application in asap.

To the person who asked about performance- wishing them to get at least a speck of empathy.

Think it was more of a last in, first out situation. Just started a month ago. :( I know there's nothing I could've done, but can't help but feel like sh-t.

Sorry to hear that, do you think your performance played a role or just plainly you were unlucky?

Thread regarding Meta / Facebook layoffs

Update for Laid Off Employees

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