Facebook owner Mark Zuckerberg terminates 60 contractors who were told in video conference that they were chosen ‘at random’ by an algorithm to get fired – just days after Apple got rid of recruitment staff.
A group of about 60 contractors who work with Facebook learned they were laid off this week after they were chosen ‘at random’ by an algorithm.
The layoffs are the latest example of Big Tech reining in spending and hiring, as just days ago Apple let go of about 100 recruiters.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has also recently said he will weed out underperforming employees with ‘aggressive performance reviews’ as the company braces for a deep economic turndown.
The contractors are employed via Accenture in their Austin office, a company that has a deal worth nearly half a billion dollars a year to staff up the company with workers in content moderation and business integrity.
The layoffs were announced during a video conference call Tuesday and they were not immediately offered new jobs or transfers by Accenture, according to Business Insider.
A spokesperson for Facebook, when asked about the news by DailyMail.com, said: ‘Thank you for the inquiry, however, we have no comment’.
The contractors were told they could ‘reapply’ for any newly available job for the next two weeks but that their current work will be gone by September 2 and will be paid through October 3.
Accenture representatives stunningly told a worker who asked how the layoffs were determined that an algorithm chose people at random and gave no specific reason for why the employees’ jobs were being cut.
It’s not the first time employees have lost their job via algorithm. In August 2021, Xsolla – a company that offers payment processing for the gaming industry – laid off 150 individuals an algorithm determined were ‘unengaged and unproductive’, according to Game Developer.
In June, Zuckerberg said the company would be ‘turning up the heat’ on performance management to weed out staffers unable to meet more aggressive goals.
‘Realistically, there are probably a bunch of people at the company who shouldn’t be here,’ he said.
‘Part of my hope by raising expectations and having more aggressive goals, and just kind of turning up the heat a little bit, is that I think some of you might decide that this place isn’t for you, and that self-selection is OK with me,’ he said.
