January 27, 2023

One person who was laid off from Google in the company's wave of staff cuts last week says he was on a leave from work taking care of his mother who is terminally ill with cancer.

VIEW press / Contributor I Getty Images Google offices in New York City.

Paul Baker was on leave for about a month when he received an email letting him know the company was laying him off, along with around 12,000 others, he told Insider.

"While on carer's leave for my immediate family member's terminal cancer, I too was laid off. After the initial shock, it morphed into sadness because I miss the people," he also wrote on LinkedIn.

Related: More Than 1,600 Tech Workers Are Being Laid Off A Day On Average In 2023, According to a New Report

On Jan. 20, Google's CEO Sundar Pichai sent a note to employees taking responsibility for hiring "for a different economic reality than the one we face today."

Baker told Insider that he was on leave and was told by a friend about the layoffs, then found his work laptop had been "cut off," the outlet wrote.

He was a video producer at Google, according to his LinkedIn, and had been at the company since 2018. Baker told Insider he was feeling "shock and sadness." The outlet said it verified the leave period as well as his severance email and prior employment with Google.

Related: In a Viral TikTok, An Ex-YouTube Employee Talks About Getting Laid Off During a Business Trip

"I'll truly miss it," he said.

Baker also told the outlet he has not received information about how his severance package would be affected by the fact that he was on career leave to care for his mom.

Pichai said in the memo the company will provide "six months of healthcare, job placement services and immigration support for those affected."

Still, he told Insider he would love to go back to the company.

"If there's ever a Google position open for another video producer position, I would take it in a heartbeat," he said.

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