Last week, Pinterest laid off just under 15% of its staff due to restructuring and investing in AI projects. After the announcement, several engineers created software to identify which colleagues were laid off. Pinterest CEO Bill Ready fired them too, calling their behavior “obstructionist.”
Ready defended the firings at an all-hands meeting last week, saying Pinterest was facing a “critical moment” and employees who disagree with the company’s direction should consider working elsewhere. “There’s a clear line between constructive debate and behavior that’s obstructionist,” Ready said, according to audio obtained by CNBC. A Pinterest spokesperson said the engineers “improperly accessed confidential company information” and violated privacy policies.
However, several Pinterest employees disagree, saying the engineers simply posted instructions showing how to prompt the company’s existing staff directory to show who was laid off. The tool was accessible to anyone in the company, they said.
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