Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, is planning a new round of job cuts as soon as this week, with “thousands” of employees expected to be affected, according to a report.
The latest round of layoffs is being driven by financial targets, Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing sources.
It is separate from the “flattening” that the company has been carrying out by offering buyout packages to managers and removing non-essential teams, the report said.
The latest phase of layoffs could be finalised within the next week, the sources said.
In November, Meta announced its first mass layoffs amid declining revenue, with roles in the technology sector most affected.
The company laid off 11,000 employees — equal to 13 per cent of its workforce, with chief executive Mark Zuckerberg apologising and taking the blame for the company's decline in revenue after disappointing earnings in October.
“I’ve decided to reduce the size of our team … we are also taking a number of additional steps to become a leaner and more efficient company by cutting discretionary spending and extending our hiring freeze through the first quarter,” Mr Zuckerberg said at the time.
Meta, which has reported a slowdown in advertising revenue and has shifted focus to its virtual reality platform Metaverse, has been asking directors and vice presidents to make lists of employees that can be let go, the report said.
Last month, the social media company reported a 55 per cent annual drop in fourth-quarter net profit, underpinned by escalating costs and a decrease in the average price per advertisement.
Meta earned a net profit of more than $4.6 billion in the quarter that ended on December 31.
Its revenue dropped by 4.4 per cent annually to more than $32.1 billion in the three months to December. It was the company’s third straight quarter of declining sales.
Meta, which employs 86,482 people, expects its March quarter total sales to be in the range of $26 billion to $28.5 billion, it said.
Companies across the technology sector have been slashing their workforces after boosting hiring at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, amid rising interest rates and growing fears of a recession in US.
Amazon, Microsoft, Google's parent Alphabet, Yahoo and Spotify are among the companies that have cut thousands of jobs in recent months.
US employers announced 102,943 job cuts in January, a fivefold increase on an annual basis and a 136 per cent increase from December, according to Chicago employment company Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
The technology sector cut 41,829 jobs, accounting for 41 per cent of the total in January, a massive increase compared with the 72 cuts announced in January 2022.
“Since November 2022, which saw the highest monthly total for the sector since Challenger began tracking in 1993 … technology companies have announced 110,793 job cuts,” the report said.
“We’re now on the other side of the hiring frenzy of the pandemic years,” said Andrew Challenger, labour expert and senior vice president of Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
“Companies are preparing for an economic slowdown, cutting workers and slowing hiring.”
Company%20Profile
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Results:
CSIL 2-star 145cm One Round with Jump-Off
1. Alice Debany Clero (USA) on Amareusa S 38.83 seconds
2. Anikka Sande (NOR) For Cash 2 39.09
3. Georgia Tame (GBR) Cash Up 39.42
4. Nadia Taryam (UAE) Askaria 3 39.63
5. Miriam Schneider (GER) Fidelius G 47.74
Tomb%20Raider%20I%E2%80%93III%20Remastered
%3Cp%3EDeveloper%3A%20Aspyr%0D%3Cbr%3EPublisher%3A%20Aspyr%0D%3Cbr%3EConsole%3A%20Nintendo%20Switch%2C%20PlayStation%204%26amp%3B5%2C%20PC%20and%20Xbox%20series%20X%2FS%0D%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 611bhp
Torque: 620Nm
Transmission: seven-speed automatic
Price: upon application
On sale: now
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The advice provided in our columns does not constitute legal advice and is provided for information only. Readers are encouraged to seek independent legal advice.
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
THE%20STRANGERS'%20CASE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20Brandt%20Andersen%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EOmar%20Sy%2C%20Jason%20Beghe%2C%20Angeliki%20Papoulia%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh1,100,000 (est)
Engine 5.2-litre V10
Gearbox seven-speed dual clutch
Power 630bhp @ 8,000rpm
Torque 600Nm @ 6,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined 15.7L / 100km (est)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
57%20Seconds
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rusty%20Cundieff%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJosh%20Hutcherson%2C%20Morgan%20Freeman%2C%20Greg%20Germann%2C%20Lovie%20Simone%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2%2F5%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
TOURNAMENT INFO
Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier
Jul 3- 14, in the Netherlands
The top two teams will qualify to play at the World T20 in the West Indies in November
UAE squad
Humaira Tasneem (captain), Chamani Seneviratne, Subha Srinivasan, Neha Sharma, Kavisha Kumari, Judit Cleetus, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Heena Hotchandani, Namita D’Souza, Ishani Senevirathne, Esha Oza, Nisha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi
Profile of Udrive
Date started: March 2016
Founder: Hasib Khan
Based: Dubai
Employees: 40
Amount raised (to date): $3.25m – $750,000 seed funding in 2017 and a Seed round of $2.5m last year. Raised $1.3m from Eureeca investors in January 2021 as part of a Series A round with a $5m target.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
