Zoom announces major cuts to staff, CEO foregoes most of his salary
Software company Zoom, which rose to prominence during the pandemic lockdowns, has announced it will cut 15 per cent of its workforce.
In an email sent to Zoom employees, CEO Eric Yuan announced 1300 workers will be made redundant.
The message began with "Zoomies", the term used internally to describe staff.
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Zoom became an incredibly popular app during the pandemic. Supplied/Rocket Entertainment Group / AKQA
It was sent earlier today, during US work hours.
"I know this is a difficult message to hear, and certainly not one I ever wanted to deliver," he said.
"For those Zoomies waking up to this news or reading this after normal work hours, I am sorry you are finding out this way but we felt it was best to notify all impacted Zoomies as soon as possible."
Yuan said US employees who were made redundant would find out via an email titled: "Departing Zoom: What You Need to Know"
Non-US employees would be told via other means, based on local employment policies.
In his announcement, Yuan described how Zoom's employee numbers tripled in two years after the beginning of the pandemic.
"Our trajectory was forever changed during the pandemic when the world faced one of its toughest challenges, and I am proud of the way we mobilised as a company to keep people connected," he said.
"We worked tirelessly and made Zoom better for our customers and users. But we also made mistakes.
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Zoom has had to let go a large chunk of staff. Getty
"We didn't take as much time as we should have to thoroughly analyse our teams or assess if we were growing sustainably, toward the highest priorities."
Yuan wrote that he was accountable for the mistakes, as well as for the redundancies today.
As a gesture of accountability, he reduced his salary for the coming year by 98 per cent, and said he would be foregoing his corporate bonus.
Yuan earned a salary of about A$430,000 last year, as well as about $18,000 as a bonus, but as the founder of Zoom, he has a estimated net worth of more than a billion dollars.
His executive team would also forego their bonuses and would reduce their base salaries by 20 per cent.
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Eric Yuan announced he would forego 98 per cent of his salary after announcing cutbacks. AP
American "Zoomies" who were let go will receive up to 16 weeks of salary and healthcare coverage, their annual bonus, stock options and outplacement services.
Yuan's email said non-US employees should expect similar support.
Zoom went from being a little-known piece of software to a common application.
The teleconferencing service allowed for mass video calls used for work and social purposes.
Zoom's cutbacks follow other massive redundancies in the tech sector. In recent weeks Meta, Google and Twitter have cut large numbers of staff.
READ MORE: Microsoft lays off 10,000 workers
Zoom became a source of connection and even entertainment during the pandemic. Netflix
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