With Meta Platforms Inc, on Wednesday, announcing that it will let go of more than 11,000 employees, which is 13% of its workforce, in one of the biggest tech layoffs in recent years, a story of an IIT Kharagpur graduate who relocated to Canada for a job with the company has gone viral.
In a post on LinkedIn, the user who goes by the name Himanshu V. posted an emotional appeal for job opportunities as a software engineer in Canada or India while describing the unfortunate set of circumstances.
“I relocated to Canada to join #Meta and 2 days after joining, my journey came to an end as I am impacted by the massive layoff. My heart goes out to everyone facing a difficult situation right now ❤️ 🫂 What’s next for me?
Honestly, I have no idea! I’m looking forward to whatever comes next. Let me know if you know of any position or hiring for a software engineer (Canada or India),” said the LinkedIn post by Himanshu, who has previously worked at organisations such as Adobe and Github., according to his profile.
Comments below the LinkedIn post were largely positive as many offered help to the IITian.
“Hey Himanshu V. Sorry to hear that and I can completely understand your position. But good news is that you are not on h1b in US and don’t have a 60 day clock ticking. As per Canada rules, since you got fired you can continue to stay till your visa ends. Moreover, you are eligible for an open work permit so that makes you hireable and companies don’t have to sponsor you,” said a comment by Vamshi Kamta who asked Himanshu for any help.
“This is ridiculous! Shows mismanagement of the highest order.
Could you please drop me a message. We (bunch of ex-Adobe guys) are actually hiring for our India-Canada (Vancouver) operations. This might just work out better for you,” said another LinkedIn user, Satyajit Sahu.
The recent Meta layoffs, announced by Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg, are aimed at not just reducing costs but also addressing a drop in revenue for the company. “Today I’m sharing some of the most difficult changes we’ve made in Meta’s history. I’ve decided to reduce the size of our team by about 13% and let more than 11,000 of our talented employees go,” Zuckerberg said in a post.
16 weeks of base pay along with two additional weeks for every year of service and six months of healthcare cost will be covered as part of the severance package by Meta.
