Meta employee earning ₹3 crore fired for using food credit to buy household items | On trend

Meta fired 24 employees in Los Angeles after it was discovered that they were misusing company-issued food credits for personal household purchases. A Financial Times report said employees had used their $25 meal credit to purchase things like toothpaste, acne pads and wine glasses.

Like most other major tech companies, Meta offers its office employees an extensive menu. While workers in larger offices like Silicon Valley headquarters have access to free on-campus food, those who work in smaller meta offices get Uber Eats or Grubhub credits. These credits are intended to be used for groceries delivered to the office.

Employees in smaller meta offices receive a daily allowance of $20 for breakfast, $25 for lunch, and $25 for dinner. These credits are issued in $25 increments.

However, two dozen Meta employees were fired after the company discovered they were using meal credits to purchase household items.

The tech giant fired only those employees who were found to have abused the food credit system over a long period of time. Some employees used the credit to have groceries delivered to their homes, even though they were only for office use. Others were caught pooling their money.

A person familiar with the matter told the FT that employees who only occasionally used meal credits for personal use were not fired. Instead, they received a warning.

“It was surreal”

A fired employee shared her experience in a post on the app Blind, where verified professionals can anonymously share their workplace experiences.

The former Meta employee said they used their $25 meal credit for things like Rite Aid toothpaste. The former employee said he earned $400,000 (approx ₹3.3 crore) at Meta.

“On days when I didn't eat at the office, like when my husband was cooking or I was having dinner with friends, I figured I shouldn't waste the meal credit,” they wrote on Blind.

When questioned by HR, they admitted the oversight. However, they were later unexpectedly released. “It was almost surreal for this to happen,” the person wrote.

These layoffs come separate from layoffs that have recently taken place at several Meta-owned companies such as WhatsApp and Threads.