Updated December 7th, 2021 at 18:46 IST
Vishal Garg, who fired 900 employees over Zoom, called staff 'dumb dolphins' in 2020 email
CEO of Better.com, Vishal Garg, who laid off around 900 employees over a Zoom call had sent a harsh email comparing some workers to 'dumb dolphins' in 2020.
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The CEO of Better.com Vishal Garg made headlines for firing around 900 employees over a Zoom call. One of the employees filmed and distributed a video of the call and shared it on the internet, which went viral. In the video, Vishal was heard saying that the company is laying off 15% of the employees and anyone who was in the call is among the unfortunate ones who are being laid off. The employees were heard cursing Vishal for his harsh remarks.
This is not the first time that the CEO of Better.com has been on the news. Last year, Vishal made waves for writing an incredibly harsh email to his employees in which he compared them to "dumb dolphins." In the email, the CEO told his employees to "wake up" and criticised them for being too slow. He compared them to 'Dumb Dolphins,' by saying that "You're a bunch of Dumb Dolphins, and Dumb Dolphins are caught in nets and eaten by sharks." He then continued the mail by telling them to stop and that they are embarrassing him.
Garg accuses former employees of being lazy
Following the massive layoff, Garg accused his former employees of being lazy and unproductive, The Independent reported. He said that at least 250 of those fired worked an average of two hours a day while clocking eight hours or more in the payroll system. He also claimed that they were "looting" clients who pay the bills. Despite this track record and occasional rants, Garg was called by Forbes as "the prototypical IT CEO," who is brilliant, brash and mercurial.
Garg's family relocated from India to Queens, New York, when he was seven years old, The Independent reported. During a podcast interview in 2019, Garg said that his interest in business began in high school when he would buy CliffNotes and other books to resell to his peers at a profit.
Garg and his high school friend and fellow immigrant, Raza Khan, founded MyRichUncle, a private student loan organisation, in 2000, according to The Independent. The site distinguished itself from other lenders by employing algorithms to determine the loan arrangements for prospective students.
(Image: @betterdotcom/Twitter)
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Published December 7th, 2021 at 18:46 IST