A former TikTok employee who was laid off by the company has gone viral on the app after filming a tour of the social media platform’s New York City office on her last day.
Simona Ruzer shared the video of her former office space to TikTok on 18 February, in which she jokingly invited viewers to “come with [her] to steal company assets from TikTok”.
In the video, which began with Ruzer struggling to gain access through a turnstile with her access keycard, the former TikTok employee showed some of the surprising decor choices, including hallways lit with colourful neon lighting.
The video also showed the 26 year old dancing in the bathroom as “Irreplaceable” by Beyoncé played loudly over the speakers, with the TikToker narrating: “The bathroom was basting ‘Irreplaceable’. So true, honestly. Never get to thinking you’re irreplaceable in the corporate world.”
Ruzer then shared a glimpse at the view of the New York City skyline and Empire State Building from TikTok’s windows, and the “fun auditorium area,” which featured multi-coloured ceiling lights.
The TikToker also shared a look at the “company assets,” which was actually an area dedicated to various snacks.
“This is super private information, so please don’t share with anyone,” she joked, before filming herself placing various snacks into her bag, as she noted that she was “taking what was rightfully [hers]”.
Ruzer added that she ended up giving most of the snacks away to an individual on the subway.
Ruzer then showed herself leaving her work laptop and ID behind for TikTok’s IT department, before revealing that she would be keeping her TikTok lanyard because she “deserves it” for working at the company for two and a half years.
“It’s the least they could give me,” she said.
The video concluded with footage of Ruzer walking out of the office for the last time, revealing that she is “excited for the next adventure”.
“It’s the least I deserve, okay!” she wrote in the caption of the TikTok.
The video has since gone viral on TikTok, where it has been viewed more than 2.4 million times, and prompted a conversation about TikTok’s trendy office space.
“Every damn time I see those types of offices I just expect the layoffs,” one person commented, while another said: “They spend so much money on an office and then have to lay people off.”
“Maybe they should downsize the office instead of the workforce, just saying,” someone else suggested.
The video was also met with amusement from some viewers, who applauded Ruzer for sharing the video about TikTok to TikTok.
“Talking about them on their own app,” one person wrote alongside laughing face emojis, while someone else said: “The irony of this.”
In addition to amusement, viewers also praised Ruzer for her handling of the layoff and shared their support for her future. Others jokingly encouraged her to steal more snacks from her former employer.
“I would have brought a duffel bag for those snacks,” one viewer joked.
In a follow-up video created after the viral response to her initial TikTok, Ruzer revealed that she has “no hard feelings” towards the company, and considers it a “blessing in disguise” that she was laid off.
“I’m really excited for what’s to come, I got severance so I’m super grateful, so I’m just, like, this chapter has ended and it’s all good,” she said.
Ruzer, who worked on TikTok’s recruiting team, then addressed the suggestions that she’d made her video go viral and said she didn’t have that power.
Per her LinkedIn profile, she’d been working for TikTok in Talent Acquisition since June 2020.
Ruzer also responded to viewers who claimed she deserved to be fired for stealing from TikTok, with the former employee clarifying that she’d taken “maybe $10 worth of snacks”.
“And yeah, it was a joke,” she added.
In the follow-up video, Ruzer also addressed concerns from viewers about the layoff, with the former employee explaining that, “to [her] knowledge,” she doesn’t believe TikTok is “doing mass layoffs”.
“I think they found my role redundant,” she explained, before noting that TikTok is “still hiring”.
Speaking to Insider, Ruzer said she saw on LinkedIn that TikTok also laid off a few other members of its recruiting team the same day that she’d been laid off.
As for the divided reaction to her video, Ruzer told the outlet that she wasn’t surprised.
“As it often goes when videos go viral, it began to get a few hundred hate comments,” she said. “As extreme as saying I was going to go to prison for theft. Theft of single-sized snack packs!”
The tech industry has seen a number of layoffs recently, with Google, Twitter and Microsoft all announcing massive job cuts and MarketWatch reporting that 403 tech companies have laid off more than 110,000 employees since the start of the year.
The Independent has contacted Ruzer and TikTok for comment.
