Reports have emerged in the Sydney Morning Herald today that Twitter has begun laying off the rest of its Australian staff, meaning the company will no longer have any staff in the country.
The reports have come from industry sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to talk to the press. The reports claim that Twitter had closed its Australian office, and this come alongside news that other regional offices are also being shuttered and staff laid off.
The news follows Elon Musk’s aquisition of Twitter last year for USD$44b, after which he has made significant cuts to Twitter’s workforce globally to try and stem the claimed USD$4m per day of losses.
Though Twitter has maintained a presence in Australia for some years, its office in Sydney was closed in mid 2022 with staff moving to exclusively remote work. However, with Musk’s takeover last year, remote workers were told to return to offices and – with no office to return to – the writing has been on the wall for Twitter’s Australian staff for a little while now.
Other tech giants such as Apple, Meta, and Google maintain a sizeable presence in the region and in Australia specifically, and it raises questions about how Twitter will be able to work with government should potential regulatory issues arise (as they so often do in this space).
On a personal note, we feel for the Twitter staff who’ve lost their roles with Twitter, and we wish them the best for finding their next gig in the not too distant future. We know it’s a rough time to be unemployed, but at the same time, January can be a great time to find a new role as well. Best of luck Twitter Australia team, and may we see you again somewhere else very soon.
