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‘Too little, too late’: Epic Games CEO apologises after laying off programmer with terminal brain cancer
Following the layoff, the programmer's wife Jenni Griffin shared a distressing post on Facebook.
Sweeney's apology prompted a wave of reactions, with several users slamming him for his decision (Image source: @the_real_tim_sweeney/Instagram)
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney sparked a conversation after he apologised for laying off an employee with brain cancer. Mike Prinke, who worked as a programmer at the company, lost his health insurance after he was laid off along with 900 other employees last week.
Following the layoff, Prinke’s wife Jenni Griffin wrote on Facebook, “My husband, Mike, was recently laid off along with over a thousand others at Epic Games. What makes this different for our family is that Mike is currently fighting terminal brain cancer.”
“And because his condition is now considered a pre-existing condition, he can’t get new coverage,” she added. “So now, as I face the reality of losing my husband… I’m also facing the reality of what type of funeral/burial 1 can afford. How I will keep a roof over our heads. How I will protect our son and the life we built together. What will happen to our dogs,” Griffin added.
Addressing Epic Games, she wrote, “He is a father. A husband. A person deeply loved.” Further, she asked people to help her connect with the company’s management.
The post quickly gained traction across social media platforms, igniting backlash against Sweeney. Soon after the outrage, Sweeney shared an apology on X. He wrote, “Epic is in contact with the family and will solve the insurance for them. There is high confidentiality around medical information and it was not a factor in this layoff decision. Sorry to everyone for not recognizing this terribly painful situation and handling it in advance.”
See here:
Epic is in contact with the family and will solve the insurance for them. There is high confidentiality around medical information and it was not a factor in this layoff decision. Sorry to everyone for not recognizing this terribly painful situation and handling it in advance.
— Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) March 29, 2026
Sweeney’s apology prompted a wave of reactions, with several users slamming him for his decision. “Too little, too late, Tim. You only ‘solved’ the insurance after the internet dragged you for laying off a dying man. How many other families got quietly screwed before the PR panic? Fire the execs who approved this mess instead of playing hero now,” an X user wrote.
“I’ve been critical of you but this is a good thing you’re doing for this family, good on you for looking at the human side of this,” another user commented. “You should’ve cut your salary and never fired these people in the first place,” a third user reacted.
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