When ethics are involved—hopefully 100% of the time—choosing jobs and careers is a tricky thing. The material conditions of the twenty-first century turn our gazes to the status, mobility, and wealth that can be afforded to us through our professional positions. Regarding the question, “Would you accept a job at Facebook,” my answer is “No.” Facebook might pay me well, give me some free therapy, and even pay me a bit for having/adopting a child (87 weekdays worth of compensation, competitive by some Scandinavian standards), but they can’t exactly entice me to join their ranks.
Meta jobs seem exciting enough, and I know a few people who have worked/interned at Meta and today talk smack about their experience. But under the hood of Big Tech is a lot of murky water in which I wish not to tread. I agree that there are ethical ways to work at largely unethical companies, but I feel that the guise of “giving people the power to build community and bring the world closer together” is a mission rarely catalyzed by large corporations. Workplace controversy, iffy data handling, and congressional questioning are but a few things I simply cannot turn myself blind to if I worked at Meta, and I would have a really difficult time constantly lying to myself (5.2) re: what goes on at my employer and the practices of my higher-ups.
