TikTok confirms layoffs in S'pore

TikTok Singapore laid off staff on Jul. 1 following a reorganisation.

A TikTok spokesperson told Mothership that the company is continuing a reorganisation to "strengthen their global operating model for Trust and Safety", the arm that oversees content moderation.

An affected employee who spoke to Mothership said they knew of around 20 people from their team who were affected.

They purportedly received an email that morning.

The situation in the office was "hectic", they said.

TikTok did not specify how many employees were affected in total.

Providing support

The TikTok spokesperson said they are looking at centralising portions of its workforce within key operating hubs and evolving the way it works to ensure teams remain scalable and agile, while advancing platform safety through the latest technological innovations.

According to TikTok, its priority is to treat employees with respect, care and transparency throughout the process.

Mothership understands that the company is providing support "consistent with local laws and regulations".

The tech firm said it is committed to ensuring that affected employees receive the information, resources and benefits available to them during this transition.

Job cuts around the world

The layoffs in Singapore coincided with those at other regional TikTok offices, with the company confirming that it also laid off employees in Indonesia on Jul. 1.

According to Tech in Asia, TikTok Indonesia said it is realigning its R&D organisation towards areas that can drive sustainable long-term growth.

Bloomberg also reported on the same day that the tech firm is considering cutting about 300 jobs at its European hub in Dublin.

Meanwhile, several former employees in Malaysia took to social media to speak about being retrenched on Jul. 1.

Union's statement

In response to Mothership's queries, the Creative Media and Publishing Union (CMPU) said that while TikTok Singapore is a non-unionised company, some employees are union members.

"In retrenchment exercises where there are individual union members working in non-unionised companies, NTUC's affiliated unions or associations will extend assistance to these individual union members should they be affected by the exercise," CMPU said.

Affected union members may reach out to CMPU via email at [email protected] for assistance.

"CMPU is also working closely with NTUC’s ecosystem of support, including NTUC PME and NTUC’s e2i (Employment and Employability Institute), to provide affected members and workers with holistic support ranging from career transition guidance to job matching. e2i stands ready to support affected Singaporeans and PRs with job matching services, career coaching and skills upgrading advisory. For more information, visit www.e2i.com.sg."