By Katherine Bindley

Not so long ago, working in tech meant job security, extravagant perks and a bring-your-whole-self-to-the-office ethos rare in other industries.

These days, a position in tech looks like a regular job -- and it's not just that there's no more grass-fed beef jerky in the kitchens. Instead workers are contending with the constant fear of layoffs, longer hours and an ever-growing list of responsibilities for the same pay.

Meta Platforms recently cut 5% of its workforce in performance-based layoffs and has put new restrictions on employee travel. Amazon.com is monitoring employees' computers as they work. Google isn't backfilling positions when people leave some teams.

It's been a stark reversal for a group that had known little but boom times, when tech set the trends for workplace culture, spreading ping-pong tables, off-site retreats, kale chips and the idea that hoodies are appropriate office attire.

A few years ago, the tech talent wars were so fierce that in some notorious cases people were being hired to do virtually nothing. Now employees find themselves doing the work of multiple laid-off colleagues. Some have lost jobs only to be rehired into positions that aren't eligible for raises or stock grants. Changing jobs used to be a surefire way to secure a raise; these days, asking for more money can lead to a job offer being withdrawn.

The shift in tech has been building slowly. For years, demand for workers outstripped supply, a dynamic that peaked during the Covid-19 pandemic. Big tech companies like Meta and Salesforce admitted they brought on too many employees. The ensuing downturn included mass layoffs that started in 2022.

"It's harder to feel like it's sustainable working at these companies," says Andre Nader, who worked at Meta for nine years and now advises workers from large tech companies on their finances. Up until 2022, he says, "You felt untouchable."

Silicon Valley companies still pay well, but some longtime tech employees say they no longer recognize the companies they work for. Management has become more focused on delivering the results Wall Street expects. Revenue remains strong for tech giants, but they're pouring resources into costly AI infrastructure, putting pressure on cash flow. With the industry all grown up, a heads-down, keep-quiet mentality has taken root, workers say.

The companies themselves aren't being shy about the change in management philosophy: Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg told podcaster Joe Rogan he wanted to see a return of "masculine energy" to corporate culture, which he argued had become neutered. Google co-founder Sergey Brin told a group of employees in February that 60 hours a week was the sweet spot of productivity, in comments reported earlier by the New York Times.

At Amazon Web Services, one product manager says he hasn't been allowed to backfill roles even though his group within the massive cloud-computing unit has taken on many more customers. And he's found day-to-day support from other parts of the company can be hard to come by, as AI work is given priority over more mundane functions. Last year, the manager ended up writing code, something he hadn't done in 10 years, because the team that would normally do it wasn't available.

Amazon hires based on business needs and priorities, including backfilling open roles, according to a spokeswoman.

One recruiter at Meta who had been laid off by the company was rehired into her old role last year, but with a catch: She's now classified as a "short-term employee." Her contract is eligible for renewal, but she doesn't get merit pay increases, promotions or stock. The recruiter says she's responsible for a volume of work that used to be spread among several people.

The company refers to being loaded with such additional responsibilities as "agility."

Kate Smith spent two years working as a contractor at Google after having worked in finance and real estate. In the time she was there, she says her workload increased significantly and there were fewer resources available.

"These jobs are becoming like everywhere else," she says.

Smith viewed the growing demands of her job as a way to broaden her experience, but she found that her perspective wasn't shared by longtime Googlers.

"People were longing for the glory days," she says.

Josh Bersin, a human-resources analyst who runs his own advisory firm, says the Trump administration and Elon Musk's tactics for cost-cutting have added to the mentality that companies can do more with less.

"Every company I talk to is talking about productivity," says Bersin. "Maybe we do have too many people. How do we get our revenue per employee up, not just our revenue?"

As companies embrace organizational flattening, they are cutting layers of management and consolidating teams.

"I'm hearing of people having 30 direct reports," says David Markley, who spent seven years at Amazon and is now an executive coach for workers at large tech companies. "It's not because the companies don't have the money. In a lot of ways, it's because of AI and the narratives out there about how collapsing the organization is better."

Layoffs are no longer a rare event; they're a regular part of doing business. In some cases, companies post record revenue while still trimming head count. More than 50,000 tech workers from over 100 companies have been laid off in 2025, according to Layoffs.fyi, a website that tracks job cuts and crowdsources lists of laid off workers.

Nowhere to go

While Amazon was less known for coddling its workers than other large tech companies, it was a place employees tended to feel trusted by the company and granted a lot of autonomy.

Some say they are seeing signs that the company has started keeping closer tabs on them.

Liz Guillen, who worked as a technical writer at Amazon Web Services until earlier this month, says she noticed a pop-up on her computer that said her screen was being viewed.

Another AWS employee recently discovered software on his work computer that can track keystrokes, monitor website visits and take screenshots.

An Amazon spokeswoman says the company uses programs to protect sensitive and proprietary information, not to monitor employees.

Offering the option to work from anywhere was once a recruiting tactic for tech companies. Amazon now requires most white-collar workers to report to offices five days a week, versus the three days required by other tech giants. And Google recently told some of its workers who had been designated remote that they need to return to an office three days a week or take an exit package. That change was reported earlier by CNBC.

Asking remote employees who live near an office to return to in-person work supports collaboration, a Google spokeswoman says.

Workers who try to look around for other opportunities in some cases find they have limited negotiating power. One woman in tech who specializes in user safety and was looking to leave her current role says she made it through eight rounds of interviews with one of the largest tech companies and received a verbal offer. She countered, asking for a 12% higher salary. She says the recruiter responded that the company didn't want to move ahead anymore based on the way the compensation conversation had gone.

Tech workers are still well-paid compared with other sectors, but currently there's a split in the industry. Those working in AI -- and especially those with Ph.D.s -- are seeing their compensation packages soar.

But those without AI experience are finding they're better off staying where they are, because companies aren't paying what they were a few years ago.

Kaitlyn Knopp, founder of the software compensation startup Pequity, says many companies are now offering more short-term or nonguaranteed compensation in the form of bonuses. A company "can peel those back year to year," she says. That makes it easier for the company to adjust its compensation spending.

Perks no more

Around 15 years ago, a Google executive threw out $1,000 bundles of cash to employees at an all-hands event around the holidays. Staff at Meta long enjoyed free laundry and dry cleaning and weren't afraid to stage walkouts in protest of company decisions. At Netflix, employees were trusted to use their judgment when it came to travel, vacation time and parental leave.

The spectacle of cash being flung at Google is long gone. A company that made bottom-up culture famous with their Friday all-hands meetings, where employees could ask leadership anything on their minds, is now home to far more tightly scripted events.

At Netflix, there are now limits on the amount of branded company gear employees can order. The company has walked back parts of its parental leave policy, which had been hailed as one of the most generous in the country. Taking more than six months of leave is now generally considered an unwise career move.

Meta a few years ago nixed free laundry and dry cleaning. Workers are only allowed to travel four times a year unless granted special permission and the budget for team swag, like hoodies and jackets, has been reduced. More recently, the quality and volume of the snacks has declined, employees say. The grass-fed beef jerky is gone and a favorite energy drink is no more.

Snacks and perks could seem petty compared with issues like job security, says one recently departed Meta employee, but taking them away degrades morale.

A few months ago, Zuckerberg told employees that participating in the company's Q&A was no longer a good use of his time, according to people who heard the remarks.

A Meta spokesman declined to comment.

At Google, the company has slashed the "fun budget" that used to be put toward off-sites like wine-tasting and go-kart racing, an employee says. The free cafes operate on reduced schedules, in-person tech support has been scaled back and employees can't order new laptops as often as they used to.

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April 25, 2025 20:00 ET (00:00 GMT)

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