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Twitter Layoff Started Today

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Re: Twitter Layoff Started Today

#111

Post by rayiner »

hughesjj wrote: post #41
throwaway5959 wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Equity isn’t an emergency fund.

Isn't and Shouldn't are different things. Also, new hires exist. Not everyone has had time to actually accumulate wealth from their compensation. Not everyone was taught financial literacy before being dumped into a high stress job. Not everyone is in good health. I think sympathy and compassion are fine ideals to hold for any of our working class cohort.

> compassion are fine ideals to hold for any of our working class cohort.

“Working class” lol. Class-wise, engineers are like the junior executives in the Mad Men era, or junior lawyers and bankers today. They are not only well compensated, but have tons of impact (and therefore leverage) as individual contributors.

The “working class” are the folks cleaning the building who are fungible commodities. You can be a 10x janitor and it won’t give you any leverage in the organization, and you have no pathway to upward mobility in the executive ranks.

Re: Twitter Layoff Started Today

#112

Post by ChrisMarshallNY »

edgefield wrote: post #98
throwaway5959 wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seriously. I wouldn’t be surprised if the lowest total comp was in excess of $200k/year. If you can’t have 6 months in cash sitting in a high yield savings account on that, there’s no amount of severance that will help you.

$200K in a HCOL area with a family is middle income and you’d be hard stretched to save much if anything.

I remember reading an article (SF-Bay-based), that, if you live in Palo Alto, and make $175K, you are considered "low income," and actually have access to some benefits.

I never made that much in my entire career. HCOL is pretty crazy, out there.

I wish them well.

I wouldn't bet on them being able to get new jobs as quickly as people think. It seems that every tech company is hemorrhaging jobs.

Re: Twitter Layoff Started Today

#113

Post by stocknoob »

falcolas wrote: post #57
throwaway5959 wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seriously. I wouldn’t be surprised if the lowest total comp was in excess of $200k/year. If you can’t have 6 months in cash sitting in a high yield savings account on that, there’s no amount of severance that will help you.

Let's pretend some of these SF twitter employees have families. $4k in rent monthly, 4k in general living expenses (these are based off median figures available publicly) A bit over $96k in living costs. Assuming that $200k in total comp includes about 25% in stock (based off publicly reported comp packages for twitter employees), and a combined state/federal 35% tax rate... They have no spare money to save without a…

Yes, because income tax brackets aren’t progressive (all the income is taxed at 35%, and no standard deduction). People should definitely live a lifestyle with no slack for savings.

It’s fault I couldn’t save anything with 3.5x the median household income.

Re: Twitter Layoff Started Today

#114

Post by rad88 »

throwaway5959 wrote: post #5
stocknoob wrote: post #2

“ many of these folks won’t be able to sell the shares they earned. The money they need pay bills and keep them afloat if and until they get new employment. When severance ends, that’s it.” It’s Twitter’s responsibility to not only offer severance, but make sure employees keep an emergency fund?

Seriously. I wouldn’t be surprised if the lowest total comp was in excess of $200k/year. If you can’t have 6 months in cash sitting in a high yield savings account on that, there’s no amount of severance that will help you.

I'm financially illiterate. Where can I find a good high yield savings account?

Re: Twitter Layoff Started Today

#115

Post by itslennysfault »

Hates_ wrote: post #38
yupper32 wrote: post #15

Almost no information here or anywhere else. Any other source? What roles? How many? Edit: 30% of its recruiting team: https://www.wsj.com/articles/twitter-lays-off-third-of-talen...

WSJ has a piece on it. A third of the talent team, which affects fewer than 100. https://www.wsj.com/articles/twitter-lays-off-third-of-talen...

makes sense. They've been in a hiring freeze for a while now. Not much sense paying recruiters to sit on their hands I guess.

Re: Twitter Layoff Started Today

#116

Post by maerF0x0 »

vlozko wrote: post #108
maerF0x0 wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

40k is accurate if you only need one bedroom. Now try being the breadwinner for 4 people.

I don’t see the motivation of raising a family and paying such a high rent in SF, particularly when Twitter has stated just about all their employees can work remote.

I agree. That's why people are leaving in droves.

Re: Twitter Layoff Started Today

#117

Post by notch656a »

onion2k wrote: post #53
baskethead wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Once they leave the company they are free to sell the stock. They are not beholden to a stock blackout anymore.

That isn't how it works unfortunately. If the shares vest during the blackout period they're only released to the employee, or former employee, once the blackout ends. The employees can't sell these until the blackout is lifted. Currently there is no end date set.

I would think someone would be happy to lend you the number of shares you have blacked out for a large fee, with a contract you release that to the lender afterwards. Something like "we lend you 75% face of your blackout shares now, in return we get all your blackout shares when they're released."

Edit: Per below comment, don't do this :)

Re: Twitter Layoff Started Today

#118

Post by least »

hughesjj wrote: post #41
throwaway5959 wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Equity isn’t an emergency fund.

Isn't and Shouldn't are different things. Also, new hires exist. Not everyone has had time to actually accumulate wealth from their compensation. Not everyone was taught financial literacy before being dumped into a high stress job. Not everyone is in good health. I think sympathy and compassion are fine ideals to hold for any of our working class cohort.

Are highly educated, highly compensated, and highly privileged folk considered working class now?

Financial literacy is something that desperately needs to be part of the curriculum in high school and I can empathize with people that will struggle as a result of their layoffs even if it's due to their own money mismanagement, but software engineers being laid off from a tech giant are definitely not working class in any sense.

Re: Twitter Layoff Started Today

#119

Post by notch656a »

actually_a_dog wrote: post #109
notch656a wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've moved across the nation with my thumb out, $20, and a tarp to tie across some trees to sleep under. It's doable on way less than $1k.

Of course it is, if you're not taking anything with you. I moved thousands of miles for $0 once, because everything I was taking fit in a suitcase that I already owned, and my flight was paid for by the company I was moving to work for. I'm talking about people who have to move apartments, and possibly families. You aren't doing that for $20.

Only 16% of SF is families with children, so that's not really representative of someone living there.

Re: Twitter Layoff Started Today

#120

Post by Dig1t »

falcolas wrote: post #57
throwaway5959 wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seriously. I wouldn’t be surprised if the lowest total comp was in excess of $200k/year. If you can’t have 6 months in cash sitting in a high yield savings account on that, there’s no amount of severance that will help you.

Let's pretend some of these SF twitter employees have families. $4k in rent monthly, 4k in general living expenses (these are based off median figures available publicly) A bit over $96k in living costs. Assuming that $200k in total comp includes about 25% in stock (based off publicly reported comp packages for twitter employees), and a combined state/federal 35% tax rate... They have no spare money to save without a…

I think you're right with your numbers and I do have some sympathy for these people, but not too much. Living in an insane COL area like the Bay with crazy high taxes is a choice, nobody forced these people to do that. There are tons of job options in other places with a much lower COL and lower taxes.

I got the hell out of the Bay as soon as I could and would definitely never choose to live there with a family.

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