- Over 30,000 tech workers have lost their jobs as of July.
- Insiders spoke to employees from Tesla to Coinbase to hear their stories.
- These are their stories of the personal and economic toll of layoffs in the industry.
According to the latest data from the US department of labor, unemployment claims have jumped to an unexpected 8-month high.
As the economy slows down many big tech companies have warned their employees of corporate downsizing and layoffs. Ahead of Facebook’s poor earnings report, several executives sent memos to their teams warning of job cuts ahead.
Earlier in the year, as cryptocurrencies crashed in one of the coldest dips the asset-class has experienced in years, the hot-shot crypto-exchange, Coinbase, laid off nearly 20% of its employees. The company went as far as canceling job offers from new recruits.
Last month, Tesla let go of more than 200 employees.
According to Crunchbase, more than 30,000 tech employees have been laid off as of July.
At Insider, we are chronicling how the economic downturn is impacting tech’s most vulnerable workers.
Here’s a running list of first-person and as-told-to stories that show the human toll of industry layoffs.
A Tesla IT manager: ‘I noticed red flags the day I got fired’
A Tesla IT worker tells Insider about the red flags they noticed before being laid off.
The employee describes the scene at Tesla’s Fremont, California factory, where on the day of the layoffs last month, people wept as they exited the lobby.
The company offered the worker an Uber voucher to get home. But they told Insider editor Jenna Gyimesi, “I feel like I’m starting over.”
Despite this experience they still feel Tesla is doing good things for the world
Read more: I got laid off at Tesla. Here are the red flags I wish I’d noticed the day it happened.
A Coinbase program manager: ‘I’ve never experienced such a lack of empathy’
For Miguel Cuevas, working at Coinbase was a dream come true.
But he was one of the 1,100 employees the company laid off as cryptocurrencies crashed earlier this year.
In the weeks prior, many employees asked if layoffs were imminent but, according to Cuevas, management told everyone to “keep chugging along as though things were normal.”
He tells Insider reporter, Jessica Xing, that he felt the company failed to deliver on its promises.
Read more: I was laid off from Coinbase. Working in crypto was a dream but now I am frustrated and angry at the company’s failed promises.
A Netflix copywriter: “I truly think it’s evil what was done to me and my colleagues today”
A copywriter at Netflix’s shuttered fan site Tudum describes the layoffs at the now-shuttered site.
First, they found out their manager’s Slack had been deactivated.
Then they noticed a call they had ignored. Others had described getting the bad news over the phone. When they called back, they received the news: two weeks pay, but their job was no more.
Read more: I was part of the layoffs at Netflix. Here’s how it went down.
A Tesla recruiter: ‘I struggled to maintain my composure and not cry’
For Quishon Walker, working at Tesla was a dream job.
As a recruiter, he was among the first to lose his job last month as the company announced they would be downsizing.
The company also announced that they would freeze hiring for the time being.
When he saw an ominous calendar invite, he knew his time was up after only two weeks of working at the company.
Read more: I just got laid off from my dream job at Tesla without warning. I feel like my life got uprooted so a billionaire could save some money.
A Coinbase engineer: “I’m worried and panicking”
Ashutosh Ukey was an entry-level engineer who was offered a dream job at Coinbase after finishing his degree at the University of Illinois.
As a visa-holder, Ukey’s status to remain in the US is contingent on finding an employer to sponsor their visa.
When Coinbase told him they were rescinding his job offer, he was worried about whether he would be able to stay in the country.
Ukey says he’s not sure if he’ll want to work in crypto again considering the precariousness of his visa situation and the uncertainty of the industry.
Read more: I had my Coinbase job offer rescinded. I’m panicking because I’ll have to leave the country in 5 months if I don’t find a new job.
If you’re a tech worker who wants to tell us your story, write to our editor Tekendra Parmar, at [email protected]