Meta employees react to ‘Grubgate’ firings over misuse of $25 meal credits

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg

“Grubgate” is reverberating around Meta.

The tech giant recently fired roughly two dozen Meta employees who misused $25 Grubhub meal credits,

Employees took to the tech giant’s channel on the workplace forum Blind to share their reactions to the news, which ranged from the sympathetic to those who felt the firings were deserved.

Blind, which is unaffiliated with Meta, requires a company email to access a specific company channel and comment.

A poll posted to the forum and seen by B-17 asked employees to respond with whether they were “Safe from Grubgate” or “Affected by Grubgate.”

Users in Blind’s Meta forum, only accessible to those with a company email address, responded to a poll asking whether they were impacted by “Grubgate.” 

Other messages seen by B-17 appeared to empathize with the fired individuals and shared their concerns about the company’s enforcement of those who break its office policies.

The Grubhub meal perk is meant to support Meta employees at locations where free meals aren’t provided by a cafeteria, or when employees work into the evening. Those who violated the policy used the $25 credit to order other items, including laundry detergent, wine glasses, and acne pads, a person familiar with the situation told B-17. Not everyone who misused the perk was fired, the person said — only those who had demonstrated a pattern of abusing it.

Several on the forum said they weren’t aware Meta would strictly enforce the policy and expressed concern about potentially violating other company policies without knowing.

“This action instills fear in employees,” one employee wrote. “Anyone can violate a policy by mistake. It’s like taking away your driving license because you were going 55 instead of 50. I challenge anyone to say that they know ALL the policies this company has.”

Another employee was less sympathetic.

“It’s not weird,” they wrote. “They violated a ‘follow this rule or you will be terminated’ policy, and they were terminated. There is nothing to worry about unless you are also violating company policies.”

“The rules you need to follow to keep your job are all written out for you. Read them,” they added.

One Meta employee wrote on the forum that they had used their Grubhub credit for a laid-off worker and received a “warning email.” Then, they said they were terminated within a week.

“My Grubhub account got deactivated first and then my intern account,” the employee said in the forum.

Another Meta employee referenced Mark Zuckerberg’s “year of efficiency” strategy in assessing the recent firings.

“Although Meta still thinks itself a large company of small entrepreneurship, with the ‘year(s) of efficiency,’ it’s starting to take policy noncompliance of employees more seriously,” they wrote.

“Should folks [have] done a better risk assessment for their $25 dinners? Likely,” the employee added. “Should Meta have requested the employee refund the company, put a block on the benefit, and delivered a one-more-strike-of-any-kind-you-are-out warning? Probably.”

Others drew a connection between the firings and recent layoffs. The company announced on Wednesday that it reorganized some of its biggest businesses, including Instagram, WhatsApp, and Reality Labs, which resulted in some role eliminations.

One post on Blind suggested knowing the reason for being fired was a silver lining for those impacted by “Grubgate.”

“These fools are so lucky… at least they know WHY they got laid off,” they wrote. “Imagine having to wonder for the rest of your life where you went wrong.”