Twitter, which was finally bought by tycoon Elon Musk last Thursday, is all set to lay off one in four employees in what will be the first phase of staff reduction.
This was reported by the Washington Post, citing a person familiar with the matter within the social networking company.
Attorney Alex Spiro, Elon Musk’s legal representative, according to the Washington Post, was one of those involved in the decisions, the report said.
As of December 2021, Twitter had approximately 7,200 employees, according to one of its most recent filings with the SEC.
If the plan predicted by the Washington Post were to be fulfilled, Twitter would lay off about 1,800 employees in the first phase.
This weekend, Musk denied the veracity of yet another Twitter hiring report, this time from the New York Times. In that case, the article said Musk’s idea was to release an unspecified amount before Nov. 1 to avoid paying for shares due on that date.
Details of Musk’s strategy with employees, according to WP.
The new Twitter and its relationship with employees
Hours after Elon Musk took over Twitter on Thursday, October 27, he fired CEO Parag Agrawal; Ned Segal, CFO; and Vijaya Gadde, Director of Legal Affairs and Policy.
Elon Musk’s acquisition ended Twitter’s nearly nine-year history as a Wall Street listed company after it went public in November 2013.
Musk, who was Twitter’s largest single shareholder before the purchase, said in April that he would pay for the acquisition primarily in cash, with some contributions from other investors and $13 billion in debt.
Musk, a self-described free speech absolutist, has promised to limit content moderation in favor of free speech.
However, such an approach risks causing conflict with some advertisers, politicians and users who would prefer a more moderate platform.
In a message to advertisers posted on his account ThursdayMusk said he bought the company to “have a common digital public square, where a wide range of opinions can be debated in a healthy way.”
He said Twitter “cannot become a free hell, where you can say anything without consequence”.
Weekend, General Motors has decided to end all advertising it does on Twitter.
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