Met employee voluntarily quits amid layoffs: ‘I was hoping someone else would keep the role’ | Today’s news

A former Meta employee has revealed that she voluntarily chose to be included in the company’s latest round of job cuts, explaining that her long-term goals were no longer aligned with the direction the tech giant was heading.

The company launched a major restructuring this week that reportedly affected nearly 8,000 employees worldwide. Meta said the layoffs were aimed at streamlining operations, reducing costs and increasing focus on investments in artificial intelligence.

“Met’s ambitions and mine were on different continents”

Julie Bone, who served as a content designer for Facebook in Los Angeles, shared the update in a LinkedIn post, ending her six-year tenure at the company.

“Personal update: I’m leaving Meta as part of today’s layoffs. In the interest of accuracy, I’ve asked to be included,” she wrote.

Bone explained that the move was not sudden and said she had been thinking about it for some time. “For a long time, Meta’s ambitions and my own have been on different continents,” she wrote.

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She added that she also felt the timing was appropriate for her personal situation and said she hoped her voluntary departure would allow another employee to retain her position.

A former employee reflects on an AI-focused workplace culture

Bone said the Meta accepted her request, although she admitted with humor that she wasn’t sure if it really affected the internal decision-making process.

“I was already on the list and not a single table cell changed? Maybe!” she wrote.

In the same post, she reflected on the company’s growing emphasis on AI skills, saying that an “AI-first” approach has become standard across teams.

She said she learned to “vibe-code” so she could prototype, solve codebase problems, and automate repetitive work with AI tools and agents.

At the same time, Bone argued that learning AI tools alone will not guarantee job security.

“It is not technophobic to say that no amount of AI skill enhancement will protect workers without coordinated action,” she wrote.

“Creative is still a thing”

Looking back on her time at Meta, Bone said she left with “deep respect” for her colleagues, describing her work related to brand voice and localization as particularly meaningful.

She added that she planned to take a short break before looking for new opportunities.

“I will be taking a short break. After that, I will look for roles where verbal transparency, strong editorial judgment and cultural savvy are considered essential, and where creativity is still important,” she wrote.

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“At that time, I’ll be eager for formal leads and wild gossip about smarter, more interesting teams doing smart and interesting work,” she added.

LinkedIn users react

Her post attracted several reactions from LinkedIn users, with many praising her decision and wishing her well for the future.

“Whether a single cell in one spreadsheet was changed matters far less than all the other positive ripples of your work and message. Well done. Take a bow and take a well-deserved rest. Congratulations on all you’ve achieved and all that’s to come,” commented one user.

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Another person warned that taking time off from work can be risky in the current job market. “Voluntary breathing in this market could trigger a year of unemployment or more,” the commentary said.

“Julie, I’m so glad you got to leave on your own terms and I know you’ll be amazing in whatever comes next. Enjoy your break!” another user wrote.