Google's mega layoffs immediately turned into Squid Game

Tech giant Google’s parent company, Alphabet, announced on Friday they were laying off 12,000 employees, and apparently, some employees didn’t find out until they got to work.

The layoffs come as other tech companies, including Meta, Twitter, Microsoft, Salesforce, and Tesla make cuts during a down-ward trending economy.

But some Twitter users have accused the company of failing to notify employees far enough in advance of the job cuts, comparing the cut-throat nature to the Netflix series Squid Game.

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“Google NYC employees who arrived at the office early this morning stood in a line to test their badges-- if light turned red, it meant you had been laid off. if green, you were safe,” Daniel Roberts tweeted.

People reacted to the news saying it reminded them of a scene from the show.

The real-life “red light, green light” game was not corroborated by any first-hand accounts but some Google employees tweeted that they only found out about their layoffs because they were locked out of their accounts.

Roberts tweeted later on clarifying that while the company sent out emails Friday morning, some employees did not see it until they arrived.

Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai sent employees an email early on Friday morning announcing the layoffs: "We’ve already sent a separate email to employees in the US who are affected. In other countries, this process will take longer due to local laws and practices."

Pichai included ways the company would be supporting US-based employees by paying the full notification period of at least 60 days, offering severance packages, paying remaining vacation time and bonuses, as well as offering six months of healthcare, job placement services, and immigration support.

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