Meta Employee Shares Heartbreaking Layoff Experience After Nearly 10 Years

Gary Tay, a Singapore-based employee of Meta, recently shared his emotional experience of being laid off just one day after training a new colleague. With nearly ten years at the company, Tay reflected on his journey from London to Singapore and expressed gratitude for his time at Meta. Despite his efforts to upskill in AI and improve team efficiency, he found himself among the thousands affected by recent layoffs. His poignant post has sparked widespread support and raised awareness about the challenges faced by employees in the tech industry amidst increasing automation. Tay's story serves as a reminder of the human impact behind corporate decisions.

By Narendra Chaudhary May 21, 2026, 12:40 IST

Meta Layoffs: A Personal Account

Meta Layoffs: A recent post by a Singapore-based employee of Meta has gone viral as he recounted the sudden end of his nearly ten-year career with the tech company. Gary Tay, who served as an AdTech Business Support Engineer, took to LinkedIn to share that he was laid off just a day after he had onboarded and trained a new colleague. He mentioned that he spent the previous day guiding his new 'pod engineer' through various workflows, believing he had successfully transferred essential knowledge. In his post, he stated, “Today, I'm laid off,” highlighting Meta’s recent global workforce reduction that impacted around 8,000 employees. His post quickly garnered significant attention.

Tay reflected on his 3,544 days at Meta, which is nearly 9 years and 9 months. His journey began in London before he moved to Singapore. He noted, “Hired in London, retrenched in Singapore. Longer than 99.5 percent of current employees globally. 99.9 percent longer than anyone in the APAC office.” He expressed gratitude for being part of Meta during its formative years when it was still known as Facebook. Tay also pointed out that few engineers in Singapore could boast a combined 15-year career at both Meta and Microsoft.

AI Upskilling Couldn’t Prevent Job Loss

Tay mentioned that he had dedicated much of this year to enhancing his skills in artificial intelligence and automation tools. He developed systems that significantly boosted team efficiency by 200-300 percent while upholding support standards for some of Meta’s largest clients. Despite these contributions, he found himself among those affected by the layoffs, a concern that many tech professionals are increasingly facing as AI becomes more prevalent across various sectors. He succinctly expressed this sentiment by stating, “AI is here to stay, apparently the human isn't,” reflecting the anxiety surrounding changes in the workplace driven by automation.

His post resonated with many, leading to an outpouring of support from colleagues, industry peers, and even strangers online. While many expressed sympathy for his situation, Tay also encouraged readers to be mindful of the thousands of employees impacted by the layoffs. He urged that people should “respect and give time to the thousands of affected employees, humans with lives to live and families to care for.”