Meta fired 24 employees for abusing meal credits.

The social media giant Meta has reportedly fired around 24 employees at its Los Angeles offices for using their $25 (£19) meal credits to purchase items such as toothpaste, laundry detergent, and wine glasses.

The technology company, which also owns the WhatsApp messaging platform and is valued at £1.2 trillion, stated that it terminated the employees after an investigation last week revealed that they had misused the system, even ordering food to their homes when they were not in the office.

Among those fired is an anonymous employee who reportedly earned $400,000 a year and claimed to have used the meal credits for household items and grocery shopping, such as toothpaste and tea.

This employee wrote on the anonymous messaging platform Blind: "On days when I wouldn't be eating in the office, like when my wife was cooking or when I was having dinner with friends, I thought I shouldn't waste the dinner credit."

When approached during the human resources investigation, the employee admitted to the violation and was subsequently fired. According to a report first published by the Financial Times, the individual wrote, "It was almost surreal for this to happen."

It was also found that some employees had spent their credits on other household items like acne pads. According to the newspaper, employees who only occasionally violated the rules were warned but were able to keep their jobs.

Free meals have long been known as one of the perks of working at major tech companies.

Founded by Mark Zuckerberg, Meta typically provides its employees with free meals from cafeterias at its larger offices, including its expansive headquarters in Silicon Valley.