Forced Exit
On November 9, Mark Zuckerberg announced broad layoffs at the company. In a letter to staff, he stated that the team would be reduced by about 13 percent, resulting in more than 11,000 employees losing their jobs. By September 2022, Meta employed 87,314 people worldwide and faced intense scrutiny over staff reductions amid strained international tensions.
Among those affected were Russian-speaking professionals, whose presence could be seen in their LinkedIn profiles and other social media activity. One former employee, David Kharebov, who relocated to Berlin, explained in a post that he was no longer with Meta due to market pressures and internal divisions. He indicated his intention to apply for roles in the European Union and noted his prior responsibilities as a public policy manager involved with conflict monitoring, nonprofits, and Civil Society groups in Russia and the Eurasian Economic Union.
Kharebov later told a media outlet that he had not been laid off and described that report as inaccurate. Shortly after, Twitter restricted access to his profile, granting access only to subscribers. His career path before Meta included a stint at Yandex in 2021, and a follower on social media suggested a return to the Russian tech sector.
The developers’ perspective
Another account from New York, Ivan Krivyakov, shared that an email arrived in his personal inbox stating he was leaving the company and that he had been removed from internal systems. Krivyakov, originally from Tomsk, identifies on LinkedIn as a senior developer at Facebook, the parent company of Meta which is considered extremist and banned in Russia. He described the layoff as less surprising given pre-release information that had circulated in the press.
Krivyakov explained that neither himself nor his former manager participated in the decision making. In the weeks after, he began receiving offers from other firms. He has sought opportunities in New York, either in an office or remote setting. His past roles include chief technology officer at Thomson Reuters and at Morgan Stanley in Manhattan. He joined Facebook in March 2020 after moving from Russia.
Looking back, he attributed part of the decision to an automated evaluation system that may have relied on artificial intelligence. His reflection suggested the process felt impersonal, as if a data-driven model was deciding who stayed and who went, echoing concerns about algorithms influencing employment.
Meanwhile, Dmitry Fedorov, a production engineer based in Bellevue, Washington, shared a similarly abrupt experience. The day of his layoff he posted a brief, upbeat message and a beach photo, and colleagues wished him luck while noting the company had lost a valued engineer. Before joining Meta in 2020, Fedorov worked with Wargaming, the Belarus-based game developer known for World of Tanks, and earned a degree from St. Petersburg State University of Aerospace Instrumentation.
New opportunities emerge
Across social channels, former Meta employees acknowledge that many laid-off peers can find roles elsewhere. One worker reflected that although memories of Meta are mixed, the skills of colleagues remain highly valuable, and hiring managers should view this as a moment to recruit strong talent. The group of dismissed employees was offered sixteen weeks of paid leave, plus two additional weeks for each year of service, with health insurance extending for six more months.
Meta’s restructuring also meant some Russian-speaking staff in certain roles appeared to remain with the company. LinkedIn profiles show these workers continuing to contribute from places like the United States, London, or Zurich, primarily in software engineering and cross-border teams. The broader market mood reflected a tense transition period for talent moving between major tech hubs during uncertain times. This situation underscores how global tech companies balance cost controls with ongoing commitments to international teams and policies.
Overall, the layoff wave highlighted the evolving nature of work in large platforms, where strategic realignments can ripple across continents. It also underscored the resilience of professionals who pivot quickly, seek new roles, and adapt to shifting geographic and regulatory landscapes. The stories of these developers and policy specialists illustrate a broader trend: talent flows adapt in response to corporate restructuring, market demand, and the continued influence of automated decision systems in modern workplaces. At the end of the day, the market rewards adaptability and continued professional growth, even in the face of sudden changes.