4 AM Email, 60-Day Deadline: Indian Workers Face Life-Altering Meta Job Cuts

Thousands of employees at Meta woke up to a 4 AM email informing them that their jobs had been cut, as the company pushes deeper into its AI-focused future, according to a report by Business Insider.

The recent layoffs have hit Indian tech professionals on H-1B visas particularly hard, exposing the fragile link between employment and immigration status in the United States.

The message informed workers that their roles had been eliminated as part of Meta’s latest reorganisation exercise. Reports suggest the company has cut nearly 8,000 jobs, which is said to be close to 10 per cent of its workforce, while also moving thousands of employees into AI-related teams.

Amazon continues to trim teams after multiple rounds of cuts. LinkedIn, too, has reduced roles in recent months as the tech industry restructures itself around AI and automation.

The layoff email reportedly asked employees already present in offices to collect their personal belongings and head home.

Why are Meta layoffs reigniting visa fears among Indian professionals in the US?

It also mentioned that access badges and internal systems would soon be deactivated, after which affected workers would be redirected to Meta’s Alumni Portal for severance details, benefits, and job assistance.

Buried within the formal memo was a section that stood out for foreign workers on H-1B visas, acknowledging the fear and uncertainty many of them are now facing.

For years, Indian engineers and software developers have helped build America’s largest technology companies.

They wrote code, led teams, bought homes, raised families, and built what many believed was a stable life overseas. For thousands now, a single email has altered that reality.

The latest wave of layoffs across the US tech industry is doing more than cutting jobs. It is reviving a long-standing concern among Indian professionals in America that losing a job could also mean losing the right to remain in the country.

Most Indian tech workers in the US are employed on H-1B visas, which are directly tied to their employers. Once employment ends, they typically have 60 days to secure another employer willing to sponsor their visa. Failure to do so means they are expected to leave the country.

For many, the consequences extend far beyond employment. A layoff triggers a race against time involving immigration paperwork, mortgage obligations, school admissions, healthcare, and family decisions.

Many have spent years waiting for green cards amid long backlogs. Some have children born in the US, while others have invested in homes assuming long-term residence. The sudden loss of a job places all those plans in immediate uncertainty.