Google and Meta roll out voluntary departure plans
Alphabet-owned Google has expanded its voluntary departure plan to some employees in Canada, France, Germany, Japan and Switzerland. A company spokesperson confirmed that the plan was launched in some teams in 2025 and expanded to the above countries in June 2026, aiming to support subsequent priority work. In Switzerland, employees who accept the offer receive one month’s salary per year of service, with severance pay capped at 12 months, and some employees have left since August. Google Cloud and DeepMind were excluded from both the earlier and the current plan.
According to French media outlet La Lettre, Meta is advancing a collectively negotiated voluntary departure plan in France that could affect about 100 of the roughly 300 local employees. The proposed plan includes severance pay of 2.15 months’ salary per year of service, as well as a leave-of-absence arrangement paid at 80% of gross salary for 10 months. The deadline for employees to apply is November 5. The arrangement requires consultation with unions and is different from Google and Microsoft’s individual voluntary departure plans.
Neither company disclosed the final number of employees who accepted. Google’s plan targets selected employees rather than all employees, and Meta’s plan is currently limited to France. The related reports all noted that this comes amid tech companies increasing AI investment and adjusting their workforce structure, but voluntary departure is different from forced layoffs.
Original source:
Title: EXCLUSIVE: Google extends voluntary buyout offers to employees in several countries Publisher: Reuters Publication date: November 4, 2026 URL: https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/google-extends-voluntary-buyout-offers-employees-several-countries-2026-11-04/ Nature of source: media report (including company spokesperson confirmation) Verification status: full report read Supporting content: Google confirmed that since June it has offered voluntary departure plans to some employees in Canada, France, Germany, Japan and Switzerland; severance in Switzerland is one month’s salary per year of service, capped at 12 months; Google Cloud and DeepMind were excluded.
ABAB AI Insight
Google’s voluntary departure plan expanded from some U.S. and U.K. teams in 2025 to five countries, and the timing coincides with Alphabet’s increased AI capital expenditure. The company spokesperson described this as an arrangement to support subsequent priority work rather than a broad layoff. The specific terms in Switzerland show that severance is linked to tenure and capped, and employees may choose whether to accept. The exclusion of Google Cloud and DeepMind indicates that the plan targets non-core AI and cloud business units.
Meta’s plan in France uses a local collective bargaining mechanism. The proposed severance ratio is higher than Google’s Switzerland plan, and it also includes leave. The arrangement requires union involvement and differs procedurally from Google’s individual voluntary plan. The report says the application deadline is November 5, but the final number of acceptances has not been disclosed. Neither company has expanded the plan into a global forced layoff.
The difference between voluntary departure and forced layoffs is whether employees have a choice. Google carried out later layoffs after at least one earlier plan, showing that a voluntary plan does not preclude later compulsory measures. Meta’s plan is currently limited to France and is a proposed arrangement under negotiation. The related reports place this in the context of tech companies adjusting workforce structure amid AI investment, but they do not provide final acceptance figures.
Overall, both companies are using voluntary plans rather than immediate forced layoffs to control some costs and adjust their workforce structure. The scope, terms and procedures of the plans differ, and the ultimate impact will depend on employee participation and whether compulsory measures follow.
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Google expanded its voluntary departure plan, launched in 2025, to some employees in five countries in June 2026, with severance in Switzerland equal to one month’s salary per year of service, capped at 12 months.
Meta is advancing a collectively negotiated voluntary departure plan in France, proposing 2.15 months’ salary per year of service and including leave, with an application deadline of November 5.
Both companies’ plans are voluntary in nature; Google Cloud and DeepMind were excluded, and the final number of acceptances has not been disclosed.