- Meta will cut roughly 10% of its workforce on May 20, following a leaked internal memo that confirmed months of speculation.
- HR experts advise employees to keep performing while quietly networking, as disengagement can accelerate placement on layoff lists.
- The extended notice period has backfired psychologically, with workers scrambling to prove their value in ways experts say won’t change outcomes.
Meta employees are facing what many describe as “28 days of hell” as the company prepares to cut approximately 10% of its workforce, with the scheduled layoff date set for May 20. The announcement came after an internal memo leaked to the public, confirming months of speculation about potential cuts at the social media giant.
According to Business Insider, the uncertainty has created widespread anxiety among both average workers and top performers alike, leaving many questioning their futures at the company.
The layoff news has put everyone at Meta in what one worker described as “an uneasy state,” with employees scrambling to prove their value while simultaneously preparing for the possibility of being shown the door. Former Netflix chief talent officer Patty McCord noted that this kind of situation “freaks everybody out,” highlighting the psychological toll of uncertainty in the workplace.
HR experts suggest that employees should focus on networking and lining up their next opportunity rather than grinding away at arbitrary projects designed to prove worth, as Business Insider reported in their analysis of the situation.
Meta Job Cuts: The Race Against Time Before Layoff Day
Meta’s decision to announce layoffs nearly a month before they take effect has created a peculiar limbo for affected employees. The extended notice period, while theoretically generous, has instead become a source of mounting stress as workers navigate an impossible situation: how do you perform at your best when you might not have a job in 28 days? Former Google head of HR Laszlo Bock was blunt about the situation, stating that “working harder in the final weeks won’t move the needle” for those at risk of being cut. Yet despite this advice, many employees find themselves unable to simply coast, caught between the fear of appearing disengaged and the futility of overperforming under a cloud of uncertainty.
The timing of Meta’s announcement has also raised questions about workplace culture and corporate responsibility. As Libby Sartain, former head of HR at Yahoo and Southwest Airlines, pointed out: “As we say here in Texas, the barn door is already open, and the horses are running.” This extended period of ambiguity affects not just individual employees but entire teams, as productivity and morale take measurable hits during what has become essentially a month-long goodbye party where nobody knows who’s packing their bags. Managers themselves are not immune to the cuts, with HR experts warning that many supervisors are too busy “putting on their own oxygen masks before assisting others” to provide meaningful guidance to their teams.
Chikara Kennedy, former senior HR manager at Meta and current CEO of a coaching firm, observed that people typically “come up with the most arbitrary projects and ideas” to prove their worth during uncertain times, noting that workers are “really trying to control the uncontrollable.” This behavior, while understandable from a psychological perspective, may actually work against employees who risk appearing desperate or unfocused during a period when Business Insider reports companies are looking for reasons to add names to the layoff list.
The irony of the situation is thick enough to cut with a knife: the harder some employees work to prove they deserve to stay, the more disengaged they might appear to observers who see frantic activity as a sign of panic rather than dedication.
Meta Workforce Reduction: Expert Advice for Surviving Corporate Restructuring
HR professionals universally agree on one counterintuitive strategy during periods of impending layoffs: continue to show up and do your job while simultaneously preparing for your exit. Staying engaged helps secure positive recommendations from higher-ups who might influence future employment opportunities, even after the current chapter ends. Disengagement, conversely, provides companies with exactly what they need—a legitimate reason to add previously hesitant names to the layoff list. This creates a bizarre performance where employees must simultaneously care deeply about their work while emotionally preparing to lose it, a professional tightrope that nobody trains for in business school.
For Meta employees specifically, the timing of these layoffs comes amid broader restructuring in the tech sector, where companies have been reassessing their workforce needs following the rapid hiring sprees of the pandemic era. The 10% reduction represents a significant shift for a company that has maintained substantial headcount across its social media platforms, virtual reality division, and advertising infrastructure.
Workers at the company now face the unenviable task of determining whether they fall within that percentage while simultaneously trying to maintain productivity that might be their only hope of being spared—or at least of being spared with a decent reference for whatever comes next.
The coming weeks will likely see Meta’s workforce continue to operate under this cloud of uncertainty, with employees balancing the competing demands of performing their current roles while secretly (or not so secretly) updating LinkedIn profiles and reaching out to former colleagues.
