Meta has laid off around two dozen employees at its Los Angeles office after uncovering improper use of company meal credits, according to a source familiar with the matter.
The employees were found to have used the meal credits, which are meant to cover food expenses during work hours, on non-food items such as laundry detergent, wine glasses, and acne treatment pads.
The Financial Times first reported the layoffs last week. Meta offers employees at smaller offices without in-house food services $20 for breakfast and $25 for lunch and dinner to order food during work hours.
However, an internal investigation revealed that some employees in the Los Angeles office misused these meal credits for personal purchases.
Meta confirmed the layoffs on Thursday, attributing them to ongoing restructuring efforts. "Several teams at Meta are making adjustments to better allocate resources with long-term objectives," said Meta spokesperson Tracy Clayton. This includes moving certain teams to new locations and reassigning some employees to different roles. Meta has not disclosed how many employees were laid off.
Meta Layoffs Impact Instagram, WhatsApp, and Reality Labs
The layoffs affected teams across Instagram, WhatsApp, and Reality Labs. Among the laid-off employees was Jane Manchun Wong, a prominent security researcher who joined Meta in 2023 after gaining recognition for uncovering new features on social media platforms. Wong was working on the Instagram and Threads teams at the time of the layoffs.
Meta has been cutting its workforce significantly over the past two years as part of a broader cost-cutting strategy. In 2022, the company laid off about 13% of its workforce, or roughly 11,000 employees.
This year, Meta announced an additional 10,000 layoffs as part of what CEO Mark Zuckerberg has referred to as the company's "year of efficiency."
Part of the issue leading to these layoffs was the misuse of meal credits, which employees allegedly spent on household goods instead of food.
