Meta fires two dozen LA staff for ‘misusing’ meal vouchers to buy non-food, household items: Report

Facebook parent Meta has fired around two dozen employees at its Los Angeles office for misusing their $25 meal voucher to purchase non-food and household items instead, as per a Fox Business report.

The story was first published by the Financial Times (FT), citing sources who said that Meta fired the staff after realising that the food credit system was being “abused” to buy household items such as detergent, wine glasses, and acne pads instead of the intended daily food allowance. Some even pooled their funds together to send meals home instead of eating in the office, it added.

Meta had not responded to the publications' queries at the time of publishing.

The Details

Meta's food allowance is $75 per day—$20 for breakfast and $25 for lunch and dinner each, the Fox report added.

Those fired were habitual “abusers,” while the occasional rule-breakers were given a warning, the report said.

According to the report, a former Meta employee who earned $4,00,000 at the tech giant posted on the anonymous job networking site Blind, saying that they used the $25 meal credits to purchase groceries. Calling the experience “surreal.” the employee said they admitted to the misuse when Meta's HR began their probe and were fired.

Jobs cut across WhatsApp, Instagram, and Reality Labs

On October 17, The Verge reported that Meta—which owns Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Reality Labs—is laying off employees across its companies. These layoffs come as part of a broader team reorganisation rather than a company-wide reduction, it added.

Meta acknowledged the layoffs in a statement, explaining that the move is designed to align resources with its long-term strategies. 

“This includes moving some teams to different locations and transitioning some employees to new roles,” the company said. Meta emphasised its efforts to assist those impacted, stating that it is working hard to find alternative opportunities for employees whose positions have been eliminated.