SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — Just days after saying there would be no more layoffs at Twitter, Elon Musk let dozens of Twitter staff go the night before Thanksgiving, according to a tweet from Platformer Managing Editor, Zoë Schiffer. According to Schiffer, around 50 Twitter engineers were fired abruptly the night before Thanksgiving with dozens of others receiving warnings.
The report was corroborated by similar reporting from Business Insider, which cited two people familiar with the company’s actions, and said the firings came as a surprise inside Twitter. Earlier this week, in a company all-hands, Musk had assured employees there would be no more layoffs for the time-being at Twitter.
Wednesday’s unexpected layoffs stemmed from performance issues, according to the reports. According to Business Insider, employees were given one month of severance. In her tweets, Schiffer quoted a tweet that had reportedly been sent to the employees who’d been warned.
“The purpose of this written performance warning is to bring to your attention our concerns regarding the quality of your coding ability, & to define for you the seriousness of the situation so that you may take immediate corrective action,” the email reportedly read. “Note that not meeting expectations could result in your termination of employment.”
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Since his $44 billion takeover of Twitter last month, Musk has laid off more than half of the company’s staff. Another 1,000 to 1,200 employees resigned rather than signing a pledge to go “hardcore” by working long hours at intense place. Some employees that did sign that pledge have also been let go, according to reports.