- Natasha Nesiba was a senior software engineer at Google, where she focused on YouTube Kids.
- On January 20, Nesiba lost her job at Google and went into labor with her second child.
An engineer said she couldn't stop shaking and crying after finding out she'd been laid off by Google hours before going into labor and giving birth to her second child.
"What was supposed to be a beautiful and exciting day of labor was really overshadowed by all of this shock and terrible news," Natasha Nesiba told Insider.
Google announced on January 20 it was laying off around 12,000 employees — or around 6% of its global workforce. In a memo to staff, CEO Sundar Pichai said the company had hired too quickly and couldn't keep all its workers amid the current "economic reality."
Nesiba, who lives in California, has been closely tied to Google since high school. She won a college scholarship from the company, which she donated to fund another student's studies at New Mexico State University. She also completed four internships at Google as a student before joining the company full-time in 2016.
Insider has verified Nesiba's identity and work history using documentation.
"I fell in love with Google," said Nesiba."I wasn't planning to leave anytime soon."
The day the company's mass layoffs were announced, Nesiba was scheduled to be induced with her second child. She said: "I woke up around 6 a.m. and my husband was just saying 'I'm so sorry'."
Nesiba's husband, who also works at Google, had woken earlier and heard news of the layoffs. His position was unaffected but he checked his wife's email and saw she'd lost her job.
"He was trying to decide if he should actually hide the email from me because it was such a big day and I was already very stressed out," said Nesiba. "But in the end, I woke up too soon for him to do anything about."
It was a tough day. "Emotions were running wild," said Nesiba. "I couldn't stop shaking and crying."
Nesiba told Insider she's going through "a very difficult postpartum experience." She said: "I'm at my most vulnerable, physically, mentally, and emotionally."
"Every one of those intimate moments with my newborn — and with my toddler, who's a year-and-a-half right now — I can't fully enjoy them," she added.
Nevertheless, although she's "very hurt" right now, Nesiba told Insider she's still grateful for her time at Google. "It really did make me a better engineer and a better person," she said.
She's also grateful for her former colleagues, who've been "super supportive." Nesiba is in a Discord group with other ex-Googlers, where they share support, advice, and career guidance.
Nesiba isn't alone. Many Google workers who lost their jobs reported feeling stunned and taken aback by the mass layoffs. A program manager who was eight months pregnant said her "heart sank" when she found out she'd been laid off. A married couple with a four-month-old baby both lost their jobs.
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider.
Were you laid off by Google or another tech company? Contact this reporter at sstacey@insider.com.