Microsoft Layoff: A former Microsoft employee's emotional social-media post about losing his job has struck a chord online, after he admitted he was initially "in denial" and pledged to secure a new role within 30 days. The post, shared as an Instagram reel, comes amid renewed attention on Microsoft's workforce reductions and voluntary-exit offers. "This was surprising," the user said. "A layoff just before Diwali, that I didn't expect," he added.
In the video, the man described the shock of the layoff and the difficulty of accepting that a stable job had suddenly ended. He said his first reaction was denial. Initially, when he received the news from the HR, he thought it was fine, the user said in the video message, hoping to find a job soon, given his work experiences in companies like Amazon and Microsoft.
The next day, the former employee noted, when the official system did not open and he found his Microsoft email invalid, that is when it hit him. The user asserted that he was using this email for the last two years.
The user then realised he was in denial, not realising the consequences of the process. "I was in denial," he said. "I did not imagine how my life is going to change after this," he added.
Giving the career update, the user has now set himself a 30-day goal to find another job that will pay him more than Microsoft, amid layoffs, heightened competition, and less hiring.
Microsoft has introduced a voluntary exit programme covering around 60,000 employees across India, the US, the UK and Canada. Eligible Indian staff could receive one month's base salary for every completed year of service, along with health insurance and career transition support. The deadline to accept the offer is December 1, 2026.
In a recent report by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the technology giant Microsoft said that its profits for the three months to the end of September jumped to more than $36.6 billion just days after announcing plans to cut its workforce by more than a quarter.
