According to sources, American technology giant Meta Platforms Inc., which owns Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp, laid off 24 employees from the Los Angeles offices for misusing their $25 meal credits. The nature of the items bought, including toothpaste, laundry detergent, and wine glasses, drew attention to the incident.
With more than 70,000 employees, Meta took an internal look into these actions, finding many were taking advantage of the meal credit system, some even sending meals home if they were not at the office. One employee, who spoke anonymously and earned a $400,000 salary, says they also use meal credits to pay for household items and groceries, like toothpaste and tea.
In a post on Blind, a messaging platform, the employee recalled saying: “When days came that I wouldn’t be dining in the office, say if my husband cooked or if I had dinner with friends, I assumed I shouldn’t be wasting the dinner credit.”.
The Financial Times, which first reported the story, said he admitted the misuse in a human resources investigation and was fired. “It was almost surreal that this was happening,” he said.
Free food has long been a signature benefit of working for any of the big tech companies, and Meta ranks 91st on Forbes’ list of the world’s best employers for 2024. The company was founded on February 4, 2004, by Mark Zuckerberg and his co-founders and has its headquarters in Menlo Park, California.
