Twitter layoffs are finally happening. A tumultuous first week at the social media company under the ownership of Elon Musk is capped with the final decision by the company to trim its workforce by laying off several of Twitter’s 7500-strong workforce. Unlike previous reports, which consisted of information and speculation alike (and Musk denied reports of any layoffs), Twitter notified its employees that job cuts were coming on Friday, November 4.
Certain employees, who have been laid off, have started tweeting about the same as well.
Probably my last Twitter Slack message. The ML Ethics, Transparency, & Accountability team was one of a kind. Forever grateful that @ruchowdh took a chance on me and I got to be a small part of it. 🙏💙 #lovewhereyouworked pic.twitter.com/L6GtpGa5Hv
— Joan Deitchman (@JoanDeitchman) November 4, 2022
As per an internal memo circulated to Twitter’s staff on Thursday, the company, with Elon at the helm, was “reducing our global workforce” in order to place the popular micro-blogging site on a “healthy path.” The exact number of layoffs are not specified – it is unknown whether Musk intends to fire a quarter of the workforce or retain a quarter of the same – but the internal email informed that the company would alert its employees by 9 AM PST on Friday about whether they will keep their jobs or whether they will receive the boot.
According to previous internal messages and an investor, about 50% of Twitter’s workforce may end up being fired, although the final count will only be clear once the layoffs have taken place.
For the lucky ones who will retain their jobs, they receive a notification via their Twitter email. If they have been fired, however, then they will receive a notification with next steps via your personal email. In case they do not receive any email from Twitter’s HR department by 5 PM PST on Friday, they are to drop an email at peoplequestions@twitter.com.
“We acknowledge this is an incredibly challenging experience to go through, whether or not you are impacted,” read the memo from Twitter. “Thank you for continuing to adhere to Twitter policies that prohibit you from discussing confidential company information on social media, with the press or elsewhere.”
Additionally, the company informed that its offices will be temporarily closed and all badge access will be suspended in order “to help ensure the safety of each employee as well as Twitter systems and customer data.” So, employees who were in an office or on their way to one were instructed to return home.
This news hardly comes as a surprise, given that Twitter employees had been bracing for layoffs ever since Musk completed the $44 billion acquisition of the popular micro-blogging site. Musk’s ownership of Twitter began by purging the company’s upper management as the billionaire rapidly cleaned house by firing Parag Agarwal, the CEO, and other executives, and became the sole member of the board of directors. Since then, managers were asked to draw up lists of high- and low-performing employees at the company, which hints heavily at job cuts.
