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Meta To Cut 5% Of Lowest-Performing Workers, Zuckerberg Braces For 'Intense Year': Reports

Meta will cut thousands of employees in the latest move for the controversial company that owns platforms like Facebook and Instagram, according to reports.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

Photo Credit: Instagram - @zuck (left) and Wikimedia Commons - LPS.1

An internal memo sent to Meta workers said five percent of low-performing employees will be terminated, Bloomberg News reported. The company that also owns WhatsApp and Threads has more than 72,000 employees, according to Meta's most recent quarterly report.

A five-percent reduction would mean about 3,600 people could lose their jobs.

"I've decided to raise the bar on performance management and move out low-performers faster," CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a note on Meta's internal message board reviewed by Bloomberg News. "We typically manage out people who aren't meeting expectations over the course of a year, but now we're going to do more extensive performance-based cuts during this cycle."

U.S. workers impacted by the cuts were expected to be notified by Monday, Feb. 10, while international employees will be informed at a later date. The firings will only include staff who have been at Meta long enough to be eligible for a performance review. 

In his memo, Zuckerberg also told employees that Meta would "provide generous severance" similar to past job cuts. The company also planned to hire new people to fill the roles in 2025.

Zuckerberg also told staff that he's expecting an "intense year" for Meta. He cited the company's ongoing focus on artificial intelligence, smart glasses, and the future of social media.

The terminations came after several controversial moves by the tech company based in Menlo Park, California. Meta recently announced it would dismantle its third-party fact-checking program in the U.S., replacing it with a "community notes" system. 

The move was Zuckerberg's latest attempt to appeal to President-elect Donald Trump before he takes office again on Monday, Jan. 20.

"The recent elections also feel like a cultural tipping point towards once again prioritizing speech, so we’re going to get back to our roots and focus on reducing mistakes, simplifying our policies, and restoring free expression on our platforms," Zuckerberg said in a video announcement.

Meta donated $1 million to Trump's inauguration fund, the Wall Street Journal reported. Trump ally and UFC president Dana White was also named to Meta's board of directors earlier in January.

Zuckerberg was also expected to attend Trump's inauguration, sitting in "a prominent spot" alongside fellow billionaires Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, NBC News reported.

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