NEW DELHI, Nov. 5 -- Meta has reportedly introduced a voluntary exit programme for employees in France, joining technology giants Microsoft and Google in offering severance packages as companies restructure their workforces amid rising investments in artificial intelligence (AI).
According to a report by French publication La Lettre, the Mark Zuckerberg-led company has offered voluntary departure options to selected employees in France, where it employs approximately 300 people. The programme could affect around 100 workers, although the specific departments and positions covered have not been disclosed.
Employees interested in accepting the offer have been given until November 5 to submit their applications, the report said. It remains unclear whether Meta intends to introduce similar arrangements in other countries.
Unlike the individual voluntary buyout programmes introduced by Microsoft and Google, Meta's proposed arrangement is reportedly being implemented through a collective contractual termination procedure, known in France as rupture conventionnelle collective (RCC).
Under French labour law, the mechanism allows employers to negotiate voluntary workforce reductions through collective agreements with employee representatives or trade unions, providing an alternative to compulsory redundancies.
Negotiations over Meta's proposed programme have reportedly been underway since July, with the company offering substantial financial incentives to employees willing to leave.
According to the report, eligible workers could receive severance equivalent to 2.15 months of salary for every completed year of service. The proposed package also includes 10 months of mobility leave, during which employees would receive 80 per cent of their gross salary.
The company is also reportedly considering additional assistance for professional retraining and employees interested in establishing their own businesses.
The financial terms, if confirmed, would make the arrangement relatively generous compared with several other voluntary exit programmes introduced by major technology companies.
Meta has previously used a similar mechanism in France. In 2023, the company reached a collective contractual termination agreement that was expected to result in the departure of 88 employees from its French workforce of approximately 350 at the time.
The latest proposal comes amid a broader restructuring of Meta's global operations as the company redirects resources towards artificial intelligence, digital infrastructure and emerging technologies.
Earlier this year, Meta announced plans to eliminate approximately 8,000 positions, representing around 10 per cent of its global workforce. In May, it also decided to reassign about 7,000 employees to functions associated with AI development and deployment.
Meta, which employs approximately 66,000 people worldwide, has been increasing investments in AI systems, data centres and computing infrastructure while reviewing staffing requirements across existing business divisions.
Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg has previously highlighted the growing ability of AI tools to improve productivity, suggesting that certain projects previously requiring large teams could increasingly be completed by individual employees using advanced technology.
The company expects capital expenditure of between $135 billion and $145 billion in 2026, primarily to support digital infrastructure, data centres and AI-related development.
Meta is also expanding its work on personal AI agents, including its Muse initiative, as competition intensifies among leading technology companies to develop more capable AI systems and integrate them into consumer and enterprise products.
The reported voluntary exit programme follows similar workforce restructuring initiatives at Microsoft and Google.
Microsoft recently announced a voluntary buyout programme covering approximately 60,000 eligible employees across the United States, Canada, India and the United Kingdom.
The programme, which applies to selected employees at level 70 or below, allows eligible workers to accept severance packages and leave the company by the end of December.
Google has also expanded its voluntary exit programme to employees in Canada, France, Germany, Japan and Switzerland as it seeks to manage operating costs while increasing expenditure on AI infrastructure.
The Alphabet-owned company confirmed that it began offering voluntary exit packages to selected employees in these countries in June, following similar initiatives in certain divisions in the United States and Britain.
In Switzerland, eligible Google employees were reportedly offered one month's salary for every year of service, subject to a maximum payment equivalent to 12 months' salary.
Google has not disclosed how many employees have accepted the offers, while its AI research division DeepMind and Google Cloud have largely remained outside previous voluntary exit programmes.
The restructuring initiatives reflect a broader shift in the global technology industry, where companies are seeking to contain workforce costs while committing substantial resources to AI research, specialised computing equipment and data centre expansion.
However, voluntary exit programmes do not necessarily indicate that companies are reducing their overall headcount. Several technology firms continue recruiting specialists in AI, cloud computing and other priority areas while reorganising teams working in established business segments.
For Meta, the immediate impact of the proposed French programme will depend on the number of eligible employees who accept the offer and the final terms agreed through the collective negotiation process.
The company has not publicly confirmed whether the arrangement will be extended beyond France or whether additional workforce reductions are planned in other markets.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.