Mark Zuckerberg’s tech giant Meta recently dismissed 24 employees from its Los Angeles office for exploiting the company’s $25 meal voucher system to buy nonfood items such as toothpaste, laundry detergent and even wine glasses, according to employees’ posts on the anonymous workplace chat app Blind.
The vouchers, intended for food deliveries when working at the office, had been misused for ordering household items, an issue Meta addressed swiftly by terminating those involved.
Meta, valued at $1.5 trillion, is known for its lavish perks, including free meals at its larger offices, a strategy designed to entice employees back into the workplace amid the rise of remote work. In smaller offices where on-site dining options aren’t available, employees are provided with meal credits for delivery services like Grubhub. This benefit, however, appears to have been stretched beyond its intended purpose by some staff.
According to The Financial Times, the misuse of meal vouchers had been happening for a while, with some employees regularly ordering cosmetics and groceries. Despite initial warnings, the situation persisted, leading to the recent terminations. Surprisingly, these sackings also involved some high-earning engineers with six-figure salaries.
While the staff involved had been given prior warnings, their continued misuse ultimately resulted in their dismissals.
This news comes as Meta makes broader cuts across several divisions, including WhatsApp, Instagram and its virtual reality unit. The company cited restructuring efforts aimed at realigning resources with long-term strategic goals.
Meta spokespersons have not directly commented on the meal voucher scandal but reiterated that restructuring involves shifting teams and roles to more critical business areas.
“Today, a few teams at Meta are making changes to ensure resources are aligned with their long-term strategic goals and location strategy,” said Meta spokesperson David Arnold in a statement. “This includes moving some teams to different locations and reallocating employees into new roles. In cases where a role is eliminated, we work hard to find new opportunities within the company.”
Although the recent layoffs are not as drastic as those seen in 2022 and 2023, when Meta cut 21,000 jobs to streamline operations, it still indicates a tightening of the belt, including a reduction in staff perks.
Over the past few years, Meta has dialed back many of its office benefits, such as the popular “to-go” boxes that allowed employees to take meals home and laundry services, another incentive for staff to spend more time at the office.
