Meta to freeze hiring to tighten budget: report

(FILES) This photograph taken on October 28, 2021 shows the META logo on a laptop screen in Moscow as Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg announced the parent company’s name is being changed to “Meta” to represent a future beyond just its troubled social network. The new handle comes as the social media giant tries to fend off one its worst crises yet and pivot to its ambitions for the “metaverse” virtual reality version of the internet that the tech giant sees as the future.
Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP

SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) – Facebook-parent Meta put out word to employees on Thursday that it will freeze hiring to cut costs as it endures tough economic times, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg revealed a planned pause in hiring during a weekly all-hands meeting, the Journal reported, saying the move came as the social media titan planned to cut expenses by at least 10 percent.

Meta declined to comment on the report, instead referring AFP to remarks Zuckerberg made in July when the company reported its first quarterly revenue drop and a plunging profit.

Zuckerberg said during an earnings call that teams would shrink in order to “reallocate our energy” as it battled a turbulent economy and the rising phenomenon of TikTok.

Meta had long delivered seemingly endless upward growth, but reported early this year its first decline in global daily users.

“This is a period that demands more intensity, and I expect us to get more done with fewer resources,” Zuckerberg told analysts during an earnings call.

Big tech platforms have been suffering from the economic climate, which is forcing advertisers to cut back on marketing budgets, and Apple’s data privacy changes, which have reduced leeway for ad personalization.

Snap and e-commerce colossus Amazon are among tech firms that have announced workforce cuts this year.

© Agence France-Presse