Better.com CEO Vishal Garg had a rather grim holiday message to employees during a Zoom webinar. Garg informed employees that the mortgage company was laying off around 9% of its total workforce, or more than 900 people who were on the call.
Garg unmercifully told employees that some of those who were on the call was part of the "unlucky group" that would be laid off. He bluntly said that the employment of those affected will be terminated "effective immediately." He added that those who will be laid off would be receiving emails from HR detailing their severance and benefits.
"If you're on this call, you are part of the unlucky group that is being laid off," Garg said.
Better.com CFO Kevin Ryan released a more sympathetic statement regarding the downsizing. Ryan said the decision to lay off so many people before the holidays was "gut-wrenching" for all of them. He said the company had to reduce its workforce to strengthen its balance sheet and to adapt to the rapidly evolving homeownership market.
During the call, Garg cited poor performance, efficiency, and productivity as the main reasons behind their decision to lay off so many people. A source said Garg also accused some employees of "stealing" from the company, their colleagues, and customers by being unproductive. He claims that they even found some workers that were only working around two hours per day.
A mortgage startup called https://t.co/gYR2q1iSTP got a $750 million investment.
The next day, its billionaire founder laid off 900 people in a three-minute Zoom meeting.
He previously called staff "a bunch of dumb dolphins" and got a $25 million bonus.https://t.co/bZfIFHWY84 — Dan Price (@DanPriceSeattle) December 4, 2021
Garg reportedly remained emotionless throughout the announcement, stating that it was the second time in his career that he had to fire so many people. He added that he didn't want to do it, but it was a necessary decision. A source with knowledge in the matter claimed that one of the employees cursed at Garg during the video conference.
The Softbank-backed mortgage lender launched its IPO via a SPAC in May and received $750 million in cash as part of the deal last week. The corporation expects to have a balance sheet of more than $1 billion. The company currently has offices in three different U.S. states.
Garg has been involved in controversy over his handling of employees before. In one email, the CEO reportedly told employees that they were "dumb dolphins" who were just embarrassing him. In one report, Garg allegedly gave his "loyal lieutenants" massive perks such as millions of dollars worth of stock options not available to other employees.
