Effect of Meta layoff on Vancouver real estate moves unclear

VANCOUVER, Wash. — Meta Platforms, Facebook’s parent company, was looking for real estate in southwest Washington, as the Portland Business Journal reported in October.

That was before CEO Mark Zuckerberg this week announced plans to lay off more than 11,000 employees and cut real estate. Now, it’s unclear how the cuts would affect the tech company’s eventual move to Vancouver.

The company had been looking for workers in the city. Additionally, he was looking for research and development space, according to people familiar with the research, although the Business Journal at the time was unable to confirm whether a lease had been signed.

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As of Friday, Meta did not respond to requests for comment on the October story. But on Thursday, Meta released a statement in response to Business Journal questions about Vancouver. He leaned into the idea of ​​remote work.

“We are currently evaluating our global real estate portfolio. The future of work is here and we embrace it at Meta,” a company spokesperson said in an email.

“The past few years have brought new possibilities around the role of the office, and we are prioritizing targeted and balanced investments to support our most strategic long-term priorities and pave the way for creating the workplace of the future” , continued the spokesperson. . “Our goal is to create a top-notch remote work experience to help everyone do the best job of their career, wherever they are.”

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In a message to workers this week, Zuckerberg described real estate downsizing and layoffs at Menlo Park, Calif.-based Meta.

“We’ve reduced costs across our business, including reducing budgets, reducing benefits and reducing our real estate footprint,” Zuckerberg said. “We are restructuring teams to increase our efficiency. But these measures alone will not bring our expenses in line with our revenue growth, so I have also made the difficult decision to let people go.”

The company has scrapped leases and agreements for offices across the United States, with greater consolidation likely as it plans to take $2 billion in fees in 2023 to reduce its footprint. Meta plans to take $900 million in fees this year to consolidate offices and end leases, according to the San Francisco Business Times, a sister publication to PBJ.