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Twitter’s mass layoffs have begun

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Re: Twitter’s mass layoffs have begun

#91
Now is a good time for us all to chill, take inventory as the year draws to an end and uncertain economic conditions have us all a little on edge.

Change happens, it's uncomfortable at first but it can be made to work for you too. Change isn't always bad. Can anyone look at Twitters performance as a public company and say that no changes were warranted? Twitters "mission" wasn't exactly being well executed either. Something was bound to happen eventually and this was a long time coming.

Had it been some Generic Private Equity Company that took Twitter private nobody would even be talking about this at all. But since you-know-who lead the buyout a lot of people have their tails in a knot over it. Has anyone considered what a giant hornets nest Elon has kicked in all this? I personally feel sorry for the poor bastard myself and I bet he wishes he could go back in time and ctrl-z all this terrible idea.

More or less he's put a big chunk of his lifes work on the line over a silly tweet about buying Twitter. You know this all started off as a silly tweet, that turned into a funny joke, that got serious and became a potentially career wrecking mistake with too much momentum to stop.

Re: Twitter’s mass layoffs have begun

#92
post #76

Musk is capricious, cruel, and clueless. Whether or not you liked Twitter, it's a culturally significant platform, and Musk has almost certainly destroyed any hope it had of surviving. In barely a week. Hopefully it destroys him, too.

If you're basing part of your comment on this event, it might be worth noting that the article states the layoffs were being mentioned before Musk.

Re: Twitter’s mass layoffs have begun

#93
post #10

And here come the lawsuits... https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-11-04/twitter-s...

good luck.... Twitter is at-will. Companies usually fire people on Friday, and show you the door the same moment.

They're suing under Californian law, which requires 60 days' notice for mass layoffs AFAIK.

Re: Twitter’s mass layoffs have begun

#94

What a contrast in leadership when you compare the way Twitter is doing this (rumor is right before bonus/stock vesting and cold impersonal email) and how Stripe is conducting their layoffs (empathy, 14 weeks severance, bonus payouts, etc.) Which company is going to have an easier time hiring after the dust settles and they have a growth stage again?

I seriously doubt Twitter will have a growth stage again

Don't tell Elon then, because he definitely paid a growth multiple for Twitter. If Twitter never grows beyond its current size then his investment is a giant failure no matter how much he manages to cut costs.

Re: Twitter’s mass layoffs have begun

#95
post #89

Since apparently nobody else in the thread has any empathy for those who've lost their jobs, future access to healthcare (in the US and less civilized countries), and financial security, I guess I'll be the first: I feel bad for people who are laid off by the machinations of billionaires. I wish we lived in a society where it wasn't optimal to act like raving lunatics will tear down every bit of security you have at…

All these people are making 200k a year and will have no problem finding another job.

Re: Twitter’s mass layoffs have begun

#96

What a contrast in leadership when you compare the way Twitter is doing this (rumor is right before bonus/stock vesting and cold impersonal email) and how Stripe is conducting their layoffs (empathy, 14 weeks severance, bonus payouts, etc.) Which company is going to have an easier time hiring after the dust settles and they have a growth stage again?

If I remember correctly, the rumor about layoffs ahead of vesting said he was going to do it before Nov 1st. That part at least, seems to have just been a rumor.

Re: Twitter’s mass layoffs have begun

#97
post #8

I'm pretty curious about how and where Twitter employees were distributed. For a company ostensibly worth $44 billion, having 7,500 staff feels pretty damn lean. It feels like Musk isn't just purging people, he's purging the Twitter culture...

we'll find out soon if Twitter really need 7500 employees. (IMO, i just don't see how and why you needs that many people to run Twitter)

Out of curiosity what do you think is a reasonable number?

Re: Twitter’s mass layoffs have begun

#98
post #92
post #76

Musk is capricious, cruel, and clueless. Whether or not you liked Twitter, it's a culturally significant platform, and Musk has almost certainly destroyed any hope it had of surviving. In barely a week. Hopefully it destroys him, too.

If you're basing part of your comment on this event, it might be worth noting that the article states the layoffs were being mentioned before Musk.

> layoffs were being mentioned before Musk

does that mean anything? (especially "mention" seems to carry no predictive value here.) were layoffs mentioned for years and nothing happened? were they put on hold because the ex-CEO wanted Musk to take the blame?

Re: Twitter’s mass layoffs have begun

#99

What a contrast in leadership when you compare the way Twitter is doing this (rumor is right before bonus/stock vesting and cold impersonal email) and how Stripe is conducting their layoffs (empathy, 14 weeks severance, bonus payouts, etc.) Which company is going to have an easier time hiring after the dust settles and they have a growth stage again?

whichever pays more

I have seen multiple people making decision of "this place pays more, but the environment looks toxic" or "this place pays more, but the business seems borderline unethical" and taking lower offer. I think that is why famous toxic places had to have very high salaries - cause the people were not interested otherwise.
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