Meta Employees In Africa Hit By Global ‘Performance-Based’ Layoffs

Meta will start a round of layoffs in Africa, Europe, and Asia, affecting over 3000 employees, beginning Monday, 10 February 2024, according to Techpoint. Staff members in most countries (including Africa) will receive their notices from 5:00 am local time. Due to local labor laws, employees in Germany, France, Italy, or the Netherlands are excluded. But, staff members in Asia, Africa, and other parts of Europe could expect bad news between any time from February 11 and 18.

This is not the first time Meta has scaled back its workforce in Africa. It recently reduced its Lagos office space, firing at least 35 staff workers in 2023, including the Nigerian engineering team.

Why is Meta scaling back on its workforce?

The company is intentionally selecting “lowest performers,” removing 5% of its labor force. In an internal memo reviewed by Reuters, Meta’s Head of People, Janelle Gale, said these cuts are “performance terminations.” These layoffs are dissimilar to previous redundancies, as Meta won’t be closing officers or making significant public announcements.

Though the company is carrying out mass layoffs, it is also increasing its hiring for machine learning engineers and other essential engineering roles. In another memo from Peng Fan, VP of Engineering for Monetization, employees were asked to help fast-track hiring between February 11 and March 13.

What other changes has Meta made recently?

In January, Meta announced the company is ending its fact-checking system in favor of a community notes model. Critics believe the shift is simply an attempt to appease the incoming Trump administration and cause real-world harm to already marginalized communities through increased hate speech and misinformation.

In the same month, the company also said it was pivoting away from DEI as the “legal and policy landscape surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the United States is changing.”

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