Airbnb lays off 25% staff; CEO Brian Chesky apologizes and outlines how future will look

Airbnb's CEO Brian Chesky, in a letter to employees laid out the future of the company. He shared details on how the company decided on laying off. He also shared the details on what will happen to those they have laid off and the future of the company. The blog post read:

Let me start with how we arrived at this decision. We are collectively living through the most harrowing crisis of our lifetime, and as it began to unfold, global travel came to a standstill. Airbnb’s business has been hit hard, with revenue this year forecasted to be less than half of what we earned in 2019. In response, we raised $2 billion in the capital and dramatically cut costs that touched nearly every corner of Airbnb.

The Coronavirus Pandemic has worst affected the tourism industry. There are no plans on reopening international borders soon, and people will still see tourism as a harmful cost. In this case, Airbnb also suffered. So, the company will lay off nearly 2000 employees. Brian also said, "Travel in this new world will look different, and we need to evolve Airbnb accordingly. People will want options that are closer to home, safer, and more affordable." Thus, the future of Airbnb looks grim.

How did Airbnb come on the conclusion of who to lay off?

"Our process started with creating a more focused business strategy built on a sustainable cost model," said Brian. The company:

- Assessed how each team mapped to its new strategy.

- Next, it determined the size and shape of each team that will go forward.

- Then, it reviewed every team member and made decisions based on critical skills.

- Lastly, it matched the skills of the employees to future business needs.

What will happen to those laid off?

The post read:

To take care of those that are leaving, we have looked across severance, equity, healthcare, and job support and done our best to treat everyone compassionately and thoughtfully.

1. The company will be providing 14 weeks salary, and if they are from the US, an additional week of salary for every year at Airbnb.

2. It is letting everyone keep their shares and participate in the May 25 vesting as well.

3. All employees can keep their health insurance until end-2020.

4. They will also help leaving-employees to find new jobs. For this, they will maintain Alumni directories and placement teams.

5. All the employees can also keep their MacBooks.

Future of Airbnb

Existing employees will manage new roles. CEO Brian asked Airbnb leaders to bring their teams together after this week. He said, "I want to give everyone the next few days to process this, and I’ll host a CEO Q&A again this Thursday at 4 PM pacific time."

The final working day for departing employees based in the US and Canada will be Monday, May 11.