Zoom lays off 1,300 employees, CEO takes 98% pay cut

New Delhi: Video communication app Zoom is laying off about 1,300 people, or 15 per cent of its workforce, its CEO Eric Yuan has announced.

Yuan also said that he is reducing his salary for the coming fiscal year by 98 per cent and foregoing his FY23 corporate bonus.

"Members of my executive leadership team will reduce their base salaries by 20 per cent for the coming fiscal year while also forfeiting their FY23 corporate bonuses," he announced.

During the pandemic, Zoom usage surged significantly as millions stayed home.

Yuan said the company is still seeing that people and businesses continue to rely on Zoom.

"But the uncertainty of the global economy, and its effect on our customers, means we need to take a hard - yet important - look inward to reset ourselves so we can weather the economic environment, deliver for our customers and achieve Zoom's long-term vision," he said in a blog post.

"We have made the tough but necessary decision to reduce our team by approximately 15 per cent and say goodbye to around 1,300 hardworking, talented colleagues," Yuan informed.

Departing full-time employees in the US will be offered up to 16 weeks' salary and healthcare coverage, payment of their earned FY23 annual bonus based on company performance, and stock option vesting for six months for US employees and through August 9, 2023 for non-US employees.

"I know this is a difficult message to hear, and certainly not one I ever wanted to deliver," said Yuan.

Zoom will announce its earnings for 2022 on February 27.