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Thousands of layoffs, reduced income and charges.
This is the scenario on Friday on Twitter, the social network that billionaire Elon Musk bought a week ago, after months of contentious negotiations.
It launched the social network, as part of its plan to save money For nearly 50% of the 7,500 employees What you have in the world.
“In terms of downsizing Twitter’s workforce, unfortunately there is no other option when the company is losing more than $4 million a day,” Musk said in a tweet late Friday.
“All those who left were offered three months’ compensation,” he added.
Earlier, Musk blamed Activist groups that put pressure on advertisers Through a “massive drop in income”.
The new owner of the platform tweeted that “activists” are raising concerns about how Twitter’s management is “trying to destroy freedom of expression in America.”
The cuts are ‘unfortunately necessary’
An internal email sent to employees on Friday said the massive job cuts were “unfortunately necessary Ensuring the company’s future success“.
Twitter employees have confirmed that their profiles have been separated from their work laptops and from Slack, a messaging system.
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Musk in his last Halloween costume.
Several employees have revealed layoffs on the platform, painting a picture of cuts affecting departments ranging from marketing to engineering.
It also included staff in communications, content regulation and product development.
A team focused on Research how Twitter uses algorithmsa topic that was a priority for Musk, was also launched, according to a tweet from a former company manager.
But it was later rejected.
Yoel Roth said Friday afternoon that more than 2,000 content moderators “in the process of reviewing the front lines have not been affected” by the cuts.
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Musk is looking for ways to cut costs on Twitter.
Advertisers leak
Almost all of Twitter’s revenue today comes from Advertising.
Volkswagen is among the brands that have stopped investing in the social network since Musk bought the company.
“We are closely monitoring the situation and will decide next steps depending on its development,” said Europe’s largest automaker.
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Elon Musk entered Twitter’s headquarters with a sink in hand.
On Thursday, the food maker General Mills, which owns brands like Cheerios and Lucky Charms, did the same.
He said he continues to monitor the social media company’s “new direction” and wanted to “assess” it. [su] Marketing spending.
Other brands that have stopped paying for advertising on the platform include automakers General Motors and Audi, and pharmaceutical giant Pfizer.
Activists and online safety groups expressed Worried about Musk’s plansTo moderate content moderation and reverse permanent bans Twitter Awards are given to controversial figures, including former US President Donald Trump.
Musk has been looking for ways to cut costs and make money in various ways from the platform, including plans to charge users a monthly subscription fee to check them out on the platform.
He also suggested that those paying the $8 per month fee would see their tweets promoted more in replies, mentions and searches, drawing criticism from some on Twitter that he was creating a two-tiered system that would benefit those willing to switch. turning off.
Musk tweeted about his plan: “We have to pay the bills somehow.”
But Brandon Borman, the former head of global communications at Twitter, questioned in an interview with the BBC how Twitter could justify asking people to pay to stay on a “level playing field” with other users.
Twitter Didn’t get any benefits In several years the number of its users has remained stable at about 300 million monthly users.
Many experts suggest that Musk, the richest man in the world, overpaid the company, given the current economic conditions and the low values of many technology stocks.
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class action
Twitter employees filed a class-action lawsuit Thursday arguing that the company was making deep job cuts without giving a 60 days noticein violation of federal and California law.
The lawsuit also asked the federal court in San Francisco to order Twitter not to require dismissed employees to sign documents waiving their rights without informing them of the court case.
“We are filing this federal complaint to ensure that Twitter is accountable to our laws and to help Twitter employees understand their rights,” said Shannon Lees-Riordan, the attorney coordinating the case.
The BBC tried to contact the Twitter address, but did not get a response.
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Musk’s predictions
It is unclear how the cuts will affect the platform’s operations. Musk is notorious for being tough when it comes to employees.
US media reports have already talked about the long hours employees spent to meet Musk’s demands after his “inauguration”.
In May, Musk said so Your work ethic expectations will be “extreme”But less than he demands of himself.
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