On May 12, employees at Meta offices across the United States distributed leaflets and protested against the installation of new software that would monitor employees' computer mouse usage.
These leaflets were posted in meeting rooms, vending machines, and even restrooms, criticizing the company as a "data extraction factory" and urging online signatures for a petition against it.
This protest emerged a week before Meta planned to lay off 10 percent of its workforce.
Meta responded by stating that this technology was not intended to monitor employees, but rather to sample how people use computers (such as moving the mouse, clicking buttons, and searching menus) in order to build AI systems that would assist with daily work tasks.
However, employees believe this constitutes workplace surveillance. Meta employees in Britain have even begun taking steps to form a labor union to improve workplace conditions.
Union organizers stated that Meta employees face the risk of job losses and the suffering of strict surveillance due to management's misguided investments.
In particular, employees criticized the situation as a "harsh reality of life," where they effectively train the AI systems that will replace them. Currently, there is growing discontent among Meta employees regarding this issue.
Ref: The Straits Times
