Mega Meta layoff: From visa to healthcare pay, how the firm will help fired employees

Facebook's parent company Meta has been battling soaring costs and a weak advertising market and is the latest of tech giants to announce a downsizing. It has announced a mega lay off as it has cut 13 per cent of its workforce, or more than 11,000 employees, in one of the biggest tech layoffs this year.  

In one of the largest tech layoffs of the year, Facebook's parent company Meta said on Wednesday confirmed the layoffs by the company and said the business had made the decision to lay off more than 11,000 workers in order to cut the size of its workforce by around 13%. The business, which has been struggling with rising expenses and a sluggish advertising market, is the most recent among IT behemoths to announce a downsize.

CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a statement to staff, "We will provide 16 weeks of basic salary plus two additional weeks for every year of service, with no maximum." He said the cost of healthcare for employees and their families for six months will be covered by the firm, along with any leftover PTO (Paid Time Off) time.

"We'll provide three months of career support with an external vendor, including early access to unpublished job leads," he said.

Speaking about the visa,  Zuckerberg said there's a notice period before termination and some visa grace periods, which means everyone will have time to make plans and work through their immigration status. "We have dedicated immigration specialists to help guide you based on what you and your family need," he added.

The layoffs are part of a plan to reduce costs at Meta following disappointing earnings and a drop in revenue.  The staff reductions are due to a sharp decline in digital advertising revenue, an economy that is teetering on the verge of recession. The move comes days after another social media giant Twitter, under the new ownership of Tesla CEO Elon Musk, let go of 50 per cent of its workforce to cut costs.