Big tech companies have been in the news in recent times for laying off employees and cutting down on their workforces for various reasons. But this time, Meta is in the news for firing its employees over food coupons. Meta, which is behind social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, recently fired around 24 employees from its Los Angeles office. According to reports, this was done as the employees were found misusing their daily meal credits.
Media reports suggest that the employees were found using their meal allowances to purchase non-food items like toothpaste, laundry detergent, and wine glasses. For those unaware, Meta typically offers its employees free meals to its employees at its larger offices, including the one in Silicon Valley. However, at smaller locations like Los Angeles, staff receive daily credits. Now employees were fired for using free Rs 2,000 (approx) meal vouchers to buy toothpaste, glasses, and other household items. This is a direct conversion from USD as the employees get $20 for breakfast, $25 for lunch, and $25 for dinner to order food through delivery services like Uber Eats and Grubhub.
Meta initiated an investigation when this came to light and it eventually found out that staff members were abusing the system. Some were even sending food home while not being present at the office. A worker who was fired had an annual salary of $400,000, and they admitted to using the meal credits for groceries, such as toothpaste and tea. The employee said that they believed that credit should not be wasted on days even when they were not in the office. They wrote this anonymously on Blind, a workplace messaging platform.
Those who were found guilty of consistently violating this perk were fired and those who occasionally misused their credits faced reprimands but retained their jobs. What are your thoughts on this incident?
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