Cloudflare under fire after TikTok video of layoff goes viral
The tech company has received backlash on social media after a former employee records herself being laid off from the company.
IT company Cloudflare has managed to find itself in social media hot water after a former employee recorded herself being laid off from the company and posted it to TikTok. In the viral video the employee is given little to no explanation from HR as to why she is being let go, despite asking multiple times, and it has sparked backlash on social media.
In the Jan. 12 video, Brittany Pietsch, the former employee, is informed by two HR representatives named Rosie and Dom that she is being laid off from the company for not meeting expectations.
Related: One in Every 10 HR Professionals Admitted to Using ChatGPT to Write Layoff Letters
“You have not met Cloudflare expectations for performance, we’ve decided to part ways with you,” said Dom.
Pietsch responds that she started at the company on Aug. 25 and that she has had “the highest activity” amongst her team since she joined.
“I have had three contracts out, done a really great job managing my deals up until the very end that decided not to close last-minute,” said Pietsch. “So I don't think that that makes a lot of sense for me in my Cloudflare journey here so far. Also, every single one-on-one I've had with my manager, every conversation I've had with him, he has been giving me nothing but I am doing a great job.”
Pietsch then pushes both representatives to provide a real reason for her being laid off instead of them “making up some bullshit” to cover up the possibility that Cloudflare hired too many people and can no longer afford employing them.
“If that's the real answer, I would rather just you tell me that instead of making up some bullshit and telling me that right before I lose my job from someone that I've never met before,” said Pietsch.
Pietsch then explains that being laid off with no explanation is “extremely traumatizing for people” and asks for more clarity on what “performance metrics” are as she suspects that it is being used as a vague term given to everyone that is being laid off.
“We're not able to go to specifics, and we won't,” said Dom.
Pietsch then told the representatives that the whole ordeal feels like a “slap in the face.”
The nine-minute video, which also made rounds on X, has sparked backlash as many users admonished Cloudflare’s decision to be non-transparent during the situation.
You can't discuss the performance metrics with the person you're terminating but you're telling them they didn't meet them?
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