Google Layoffs: Thousands of ex-Google employees flock to Discord for financial advice, emotional support
One of the laid-off engineers, who worked at Google for nearly eight years, claimed that the server has gained over 17,800 members in just a few days
- Feb 6, 2023,
- Updated Feb 6, 2023 10:15 AM IST
Google employees who were recently laid off have found support and comfort in a new Discord server, called "Google Post-Layoffs." The server has become a virtual support group for thousands of former Google workers, as well as some current employees, recruiters, and journalists. According to a report by Business Insider, the Discord server was created on January 20, when Google announced it would be cutting 12,000 roles from its workforce.
Laid-off engineer Zac Bowling who worked at Google for nearly eight years claimed that the server has gained over 17,800 members in just a few days. Within the server, there are hundreds of channels on the server, with some specifically for different Google teams and offices. Additionally, former and present Google employees are using these channels in order to deal with financial issues as well as for mental-health support. The servers are also helping laid off employees find new jobs.
Lot of Discussion, Venting and Emotional Processing
"It gave us a way to at least communicate with our teams, but also each other, to figure things out and to have some connection," said Bowling, who felt "immediately isolated" after his layoff. The report quotes another Google employee who was laid off recently: Chris McDonald. The former Google engineer claimed that the server provided an emotional support to him and employees like him. He stated that, "There's been a lot of discussion, venting, and emotional processing."
He further added "It's definitely very touching to see a lot of people coming together to support each other very quickly over a tough moment," he said.
Google staff on Discord is also reportedly curated a Google doc spreadsheet to track the impact of the layoffs and which departments were affected the most. Despite this, the Discord server and its community have provided a much-needed outlet for Google employees to cope with the layoffs and find comfort in each other's experience.
Also read: Google layoffs: Employees protest against poor work conditions, job cuts
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Google employees who were recently laid off have found support and comfort in a new Discord server, called "Google Post-Layoffs." The server has become a virtual support group for thousands of former Google workers, as well as some current employees, recruiters, and journalists. According to a report by Business Insider, the Discord server was created on January 20, when Google announced it would be cutting 12,000 roles from its workforce.
Laid-off engineer Zac Bowling who worked at Google for nearly eight years claimed that the server has gained over 17,800 members in just a few days. Within the server, there are hundreds of channels on the server, with some specifically for different Google teams and offices. Additionally, former and present Google employees are using these channels in order to deal with financial issues as well as for mental-health support. The servers are also helping laid off employees find new jobs.
Lot of Discussion, Venting and Emotional Processing
"It gave us a way to at least communicate with our teams, but also each other, to figure things out and to have some connection," said Bowling, who felt "immediately isolated" after his layoff. The report quotes another Google employee who was laid off recently: Chris McDonald. The former Google engineer claimed that the server provided an emotional support to him and employees like him. He stated that, "There's been a lot of discussion, venting, and emotional processing."
He further added "It's definitely very touching to see a lot of people coming together to support each other very quickly over a tough moment," he said.
Google staff on Discord is also reportedly curated a Google doc spreadsheet to track the impact of the layoffs and which departments were affected the most. Despite this, the Discord server and its community have provided a much-needed outlet for Google employees to cope with the layoffs and find comfort in each other's experience.
Also read: Google layoffs: Employees protest against poor work conditions, job cuts
For Unparalleled coverage of India's Businesses and Economy – Subscribe to Business Today Magazine