Meta Platforms plans to dismiss nearly 3,600 employees identified as low performers and replace them with new hires, according to an internal memo reported by Bloomberg on Tuesday and subsequent media reports.
The company, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, confirmed to Agence France-Presse (AFP) that CEO Mark Zuckerberg's decision will affect 5% of its workforce.
Meta had approximately 72,400 employees as of September.
"I've decided to raise the bar on performance management and move out low-performers faster," Zuckerberg said.
The CEO said the performance-based cuts are intended to ensure that the company has the "strongest talent" and can "bring new people in."
Performance-based dismissals are a common practice among major U.S. corporations. Microsoft announced similar cuts last week, affecting less than one percent of its workforce, Business Insider reported.
The layoffs come amid broader changes at Meta before Donald Trump's return to the White House on Jan. 20.
Zuckerberg has recently aligned more closely with conservative ideas and political figures, including having dinner meetings with Trump and nominating a Republican as Meta's head of public affairs.
Last week, Zuckerberg announced the end of the company's U.S. fact-checking program, which aimed to combat misinformation on its platforms. The program had been criticized by conservative voices, who viewed it as censorship.
Under the new system, users can add context to posts, similar to features on X, formerly Twitter, which was championed by the platform's owner, Elon Musk.
The company has also scaled back its diversity initiatives and relaxed content moderation rules on Facebook and Instagram, particularly regarding certain forms of hostile speech.
