Well hello there! Your performance reviews may be subject to… creative reinterpretation???

That’s what 3,600 Meta employees learned last week when CEO Mark Zuckerberg branded them as “low performers” during the latest round of layoffs. But here’s where the story takes an interesting turn – many of these supposedly “underperforming” employees came with receipts – signed, sealed, and delivered.

“I’m not a ‘low performer.’ I’ve got the reviews to prove it, and countless colleagues and managers will vouch for me!” wrote one content manager on LinkedIn. A data scientist even shared screenshots showing consistent “greatly exceeded expectations” ratings.

Another ex-employee put it perfectly: “That label is misleading, and for many of us, it’s flat-out wrong.”

Seems like Zuckerberg’s definition of “low performance” might need a fact-checker. And here’s the thing: If “exceeds expectations” employees are being labeled as low performers, maybe it’s not the employees who need a performance review….

Got questions? Comments? Want to share your “exceeds expectations” review that somehow didn’t exceed expectations? Hit reply – we’d love to hear from you!

— Team Talivity 

Today’s edition is a 4-minute read. Here’s what to expect 

 Randstad CEO sees disconnect in job market

️ 1 in 3 employees lack salary transparency

️ Virtual recruiter platform lands $16M

 Layoffs at Blue Origin, Southwest

 TA roles at Amazon, Target

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NEWS

One Thing You Should Know This Week

WSJ: Economic Optimism Isn’t Sparking Job Growth

The job market’s experiencing a dangerous disconnect: While executives are talking optimistically about the economy, they’re not backing up that talk with actual hiring, according to Randstad’s CEO Sander van’t Noordende.

 The big picture

Employers are sending mixed signals – and it’s creating a bottleneck in the U.S. job market. Despite positive economic indicators and business confidence, companies are sticking to replacement hires rather than growth positions. It’s like everyone’s ready to party, but nobody wants to be the first one on the dance floor.

 By the numbers:

• 30% of companies delayed hiring decisions pending election results
• 6 consecutive months of manufacturing activity decline last year
• 143,000 jobs added to U.S. economy last month, significant drop from Q4
• 54% of small businesses “notably cautious” with spending
• 47% drop in background screening volumes
• 65% of companies “optimistic” about the economy while maintaining hiring freezes

  Lessons from abroad

While U.S. employers remain cautiously optimistic, their European counterparts show a different pattern. The complete opposite, actually. Companies in Europe maintain consistent hiring despite less optimism about the economic situation – proving that sometimes actions speak louder than words.

 Playing to win

Randstad isn’t just observing these trends – they’re adapting to them. The company is focusing on growth sectors like transport and logistics while acknowledging pressure in areas like the auto sector. It’s a reminder that even in uncertain markets, opportunities exist if you know where to look. As van’t Noordende puts it: “Specialization is key, we are focusing on growth through specialization.”

 What TAs should know

For recruiters, the playbook needs a major upgrade – strategically, speaking. Focus recruitment efforts on critical replacement positions while building stronger pipelines in growth sectors like transport and logistics. Keep a close eye on early cyclical sectors showing improvement, and consider temporary and contract positions as bridge solutions during this period of cautious hiring. Above all, maintain those relationships with passive candidates – they’ll be gold when hiring picks up again.

️ Read more in the Wall Street Journal.

NUMBERS

Numbers That’ll Make You Think

• 13.2% – MBA applications surged last year, proving that when the job market gets tough, the tough go back to school. (Financial Times)
• 1 in 3 – Employees have no salary transparency at work. C’mon, stop playing salary peek-a-boo…and show us the money! (Indeed)
• $191.5M – Upwork’s Q4 revenue hits record high. Who needs a 9-to-5 when you’ve got 24/7 flexibility? (HR Tech Feed)
• 3.5% – Revenue improvement for staffing giant Recruit Holdings in Q3. Rome wasn’t staffed in a day – every percentage point counts in this economy. (Staffing Industry)
• 42% – Remote workers asked to return to office. Your dog’s separation anxiety starts… now. (Staffing Industry)
• 46% – Gen Z securing jobs through TikTok. When “work it” means actual work. (Staffing Industry)

TALIVITY SHORTLIST

Find The Right HR Tech for Your Business—In Less Time Than a Coffee Break

INDUSTRY INTEL

M&A Deals, Industry Moves, & Other Things To Know

• Tech giant Amazon’s RTO mandate hits a snag: Not enough desks for everyone. Looks like someone skipped office math… (WSJ)
• HR tech startup Hirezon secured $16M for its virtual recruiter platform. AI recruiters just got their allowance – no more cyber ramen noodles. (HR Tech Feed)
• HR platform HiBob acquires financial planning platform Mosaic in game-changing move, which is pretty much what happens if spreadsheets and small talk had a baby. (UNLEASH)
• Job board pioneer Professional Diversity Network invests $1.3M in AI to power its recruitment platform. (HR Tech Feed)
• Job marketplace ZipRecruiter ends affiliate program for publishers. Pour one out for the affiliate links. (Job Board Secrets)
• E-commerce giant Amazon fends off union push at North Carolina warehouse. Score one for Andy Jassy. (NYT)
• AI startup Noxus raises €1.4M to help enterprises build their own AI workforce. Finally, AI workers can move out of their parent’s server. (EU Startups)

OPEN ROLES

Jobs You Might Want (For Yourself!)

• Live entertainment company Live Nation Entertainment is hiring a Recruiting and Onboarding Specialist based in Wheatland, CA
• Luxury watchmaker Breitling is hiring a Human Resources Director based in Wilton, CT
• Professional services firm PwC is hiring a Managed Services Human Capital Payroll based in California, CA
• Retail giant Target is hiring an Executive HR Leader based in North Attleboro, MA
• Recruitment agency Higher Group is hiring a Tech Recruiter based in New York, NY
• E-commerce leader Amazon is hiring a Technical Sourcing Recruiter based in Austin, TX

For more of these roles delivered to your inbox every Monday, subscribe to the Talivity Jobs newsletter by clicking here. For a full list of open roles, head over to our job board by clicking here.

LAYOFFS

Places For You To Source Fresh Talent

• Airline giant Southwest to cut 1,750 jobs in first-ever mass layoff. (WSJ)
• Space venture Blue Origin to reduce workforce by about 10% across its operations. (Yahoo)
• HR platform Justworks announces reduction of nearly 200 employees. (Reuters)
• Fintech unicorn Zepz to lay off 20% of global workforce. (JustWorks)