Bloomberg reports that Meta will lay off 5% of staff

By The Associated Press

News reports say that social media company Meta Platforms is planning to cut 5% of total staff this year by terminating staff based on performance and hiring new workers to replace them.

Bloomberg News reported that Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg made the announcement in an internal note to employees, saying he wants to “raise the bar on performance management and move out low-performers faster.”

Meta employs about 72,000 people, according to recent filings, so cutting 5% of staff would amount to 3,600 people, Bloomberg said Tuesday. The Menlo Park, California-based company owns Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Threads.

The company declined to comment Wednesday but said that Bloomberg’s reporting was accurate.

Workers in the U.S. who will be affected will be notified on Feb. 10, while those in other countries will be informed later, Bloomberg said.