Meta approves massive bonuses for executives — days after slashing 5% of workforce

Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta approved massive bonuses for executives — days after the tech giant laid off about 4,000 workers.

In a corporate filing on Thursday, Meta said it approved “an increase in the target bonus percentage” for its annual bonus plan. 

The company’s executives could now earn a bonus representing 200% of their base salary, up from 75%, according to the filing.

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Zuckerberg — the world’s second richest person behind Elon Musk with a net worth of $245 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index — is excluded from the updated bonus plan, the filing noted.

Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The changes were approved on Feb. 13 after a committee for Meta’s board of directors found that the total target compensation for executives “was at or below the 15th percentile” compared to figures at rival companies.

“Following this increase, the target total cash compensation for the named executive officers (other than the CEO) falls at approximately the 50th percentile of the Peer Group Target Cash Compensation,” the filing said.

Just days prior to the bonus change, Meta started laying off approximately 5% of its workforce, targeting low-performers. Zuckerberg earlier said he “decided to raise the bar on performance management.”

Meta also recently slashed its stock awards for staffers, according to the Financial Times. 

The tech giant reduced its annual distribution of stock options by about 10% for thousands of staffers, according to the report.

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The changes could vary based on where workers live and their role at the company, the report said.

Meta shares have soared 48% over the past 12 months as the company has made big bets on artificial intelligence.

The company recently said it plans to spend $65 billion this year on AI and robot advancements.

In January, Meta said its fourth-quarter revenue jumped 21% from the year before to $48.39 billion.

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Investor sentiment around Meta, and its tech rivals, has improved as Zuckerberg and other billionaire executives have grown closer to President Trump. 

Zuckerberg last month attended the inauguration, alongside Tesla boss Elon Musk, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai.

Tech giants have been hoping for more relaxed regulatory oversight under the Trump administration.