Pinterest sacks two engineers for creating software to identify fired workers
Pinterest has fired two engineers who created a software tool to identify which workers had lost their jobs in a recent round of cuts and then shared the information, according to reports.The digital pinboard business announced significant job cuts earlier this month, with the chief executive, Bill Ready, telling staff he was “doubling down on an AI-forward approach”, according to a LinkedIn post by a former employee.Pinterest, which is based in San Francisco and has an office in London, said the cuts would affect about 15% of its workforce, or about 700 people, but did not specify which teams or staff members would be affected.Two engineers at the company then wrote code to identify sacked staff.A spokesperson for Pinterest said: “Two engineers wrote custom scripts improperly accessing confidential company information to identify the locations and names of all dismissed employees and then shared it more broadly.
This was a clear violation of Pinterest policy and of their former colleagues’ privacy.”It is unclear whether the engineers, who have not been named, shared the information with colleagues, or with people outside Pinterest.The script – a set of commands written to automate a task within existing software or change its function – was aimed at internal tools for workers to communicate, the BBC reported, citing an anonymous source.The source, who the BBC said was “familiar with the firings”, said the code created an alert as to which employee names were being removed or deactivated.Pinterest has been investing heavily in AI to create more personalised content for its users and automated tools for marketers.
But shares in the company have dropped by more than 20% this year as investors assess the threat from more advanced AI platforms.Ready said in a company-wide meeting that while “healthy debate and dissent are expected, that’s how we make our decisions”, according to CNBC, which first reported the news.The chief executive said Pinterest was facing a “critical moment” and that staff should consider a job elsewhere if they were “working against the direction of the company” and disagreed with its mission, CNBC reported.It comes amid a wave of job cuts in the techy sector, as businesses increasingly rely on AI.Last week, Amazon announced it would cut 16,000 roles worldwide, its second round of redundancies in three months.
Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, said it would cut more than 1,000 jobs from its Reality Labs division to redirect resources to AI wearables and phone features.Meanwhile, Autodesk, a design software maker, announced plans this month to cut about 1,000 jobs.
UK services sector job cuts continue as companies automate, PMI survey shows
Companies in the UK’s services sector cut jobs last month, as they turned to “automation” rather than hiring new staff, a closely watched survey showed.The monthly purchasing managers’ index showed employment numbers fell more sharply in January compared with December, continuing a trend that started in October 2024.The PMI survey, which is considered to be one of the most reliable indicators of how a sector is performing, said this was the “longest period of job shedding” in the UK services sector in 16 years, with firms also choosing not to replace voluntary leavers.The survey compiled by S&P Global said anecdotal evidence suggested some companies were turning to automation to make up for the staffing shortfall and increase productivity, alongside squeezed margins and fragile market conditions also affecting hiring decisions.Tim Moore, the economics indices director at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said: “There were again gloomy signals for the UK labour market outlook as staff hiring decreased at a steeper pace in January as firms looked to offset rising payroll costs
Striking Starbucks workers urge customers to delete coffee chain’s app
Striking Starbucks baristas are calling on customers of the world’s largest coffee chain to delete its popular mobile app in solidarity with their demands for a first union contract.Starbucks Workers United, which has been coordinating a strike for almost three months, is vowing to press ahead.“We baristas are still fighting for a fair contract, and this fight is active and ongoing,” said KC Ihekwaba, a barista at Starbucks in Lafayette, Colorado, on a solidarity union call earlier this week. “Our fire for change is still burning. Our spirits still strong
Wegovy and Ozempic maker forecasts sharp drop in revenue for 2026
The maker of Wegovy and Ozempic, Novo Nordisk, has predicted a sharp drop in revenues this year owing to what its boss described as a “painful” push by Donald Trump to lower US weight-loss drug prices, rising competition, and the loss of important patent protections.Denmark’s Novo, once the poster-child for the growth in weight-loss treatments, said sales this year were likely to fall between 5% and 13%, ending years of double-digit gains, despite the promising launch of its new Wegovy pill in the US. Its share price plummeted 17% on Wednesday, erasing all gains so far this year. In the past year the stock has lost nearly 50% of its value.Last year, Novo’s total sales grew by 10% to 309bn Danish kroner (£36
Santander takes fresh swipe at City watchdog as its car loan scandal bill tops £460m
Santander has accused the City watchdog of overreach after its bill for the UK motor finance scandal reached £461m, as the Spanish lender signed a $12bn takeover of an American bank.The bank – which announced the surprise takeover of US-based Webster Bank on Tuesday night – took a fresh swipe at the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on Wednesday over a compensation scheme for the scandal.Santander UK had been concerned over what it claimed was a lack of clarity around the regulator’s plans for an £11bn redress scheme, which was meant to draw a line under the ballooning motor finance scandal.Santander said on Wednesday it had put aside a further £183m to compensate drivers who were overcharged via unfair commission arrangements between lenders and car dealers.However, the bank said this was based on the FCA’s proposals for payouts, which it criticised for going too far
Zero net migration would shrink UK economy by 3.6%, says thinktank
The UK economy would be 3.6% smaller by 2040 if net migration fell to zero, forcing the government to raise taxes to combat a much bigger budget deficit, a thinktank has predicted.The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) said falling birthrates in the UK and a sharp decrease in net migration last year had led it to consider what would happen if this trend continued to the end of the decade.In this scenario the UK population would stop growing at about 70 million in 2030. The latest official figures showed the UK population was 69
Women in tech and finance at higher risk from AI job losses, report says
Women working in tech and financial services are at greater risk of losing their jobs to increased use of AI and automation than their male peers, according to a report that found experienced females were also being sidelined as a result of “rigid hiring processes”.“Mid-career” women – with at least five years’ experience – are being overlooked for digital roles in the tech and financial and professional services sectors, where they are traditionally underrepresented, according to the report by the City of London Corporation.The governing body that runs the capital’s Square Mile found female applicants were discriminated against by rigid, and sometimes automated, screening of their CVs, which did not take into account career gaps related to caring for children or relatives, or only narrowly considered their professional experience.To reverse the trend, the corporation is calling on employers to focus on re-skilling female workers not currently in technical roles, particularly those in clerical positions most at risk of being displaced by automation.It is estimated that about 119,000 clerical roles in tech and the financial and professional service sectors, predominantly carried out by women, will be displaced by automation over the next decade
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