Economy

For Many WeWork Employees, the Job Is About to Change

The co-working giant is letting 2,400 employees go and outsourcing 1,000 cleaning and facilities jobs as part of a company-wide belt-tightening.
It's downsizing time at the once-high-flying co-working company.Mark Makela/Reuters

After more than three years of working as a cleaner at a New York branch of the co-working office space WeWork, Jane was given a choice last week: Either accept the company’s offer to transfer her employment to an outside contracting outfit, or she would lose her job.

“WeWork’s really not giving us any other option: It’s either you take it or leave it,” she said. (She asked CityLab not to use her name, because she didn’t want to risk retaliation from her employer.) “You either take the job offer or you’re going to stay without a job.”