According to a court document, a case was brought against Twitter on Thursday, saying that the social media platform, currently run by Elon Musk, broke the law by failing to provide 60 days’ notice before mass layoffs.
Five current or former employees are named as plaintiffs in the action, one of whom was informed that his employment will end on Tuesday, in the U.S. District Court in San Francisco. Twitter is identified as the defendant.
Although they are no longer employed by Twitter, the company assured its staff that they would still get salary and benefits. Their last “working day” at the firm was Friday, according to an email from Twitter that was sent to laid-off workers in New York and obtained by NBC News, but it also said that they will continue to be paid until their separation date in February.
Another Twitter employee who got a severance email and requested anonymity claimed they were informed they would get full benefits and payment until early February.
According to the complaint, three more employees have had access to their Twitter accounts blocked as of Thursday without receiving any official notification of a layoff, which they take to suggest they will lose their employment.
The complaint claims that Twitter is “currently engaged in undertaking mass layoffs without giving the appropriate notice under the federal WARN Act,” which calls for a 60-day notice before certain plant closings or mass layoffs.
Twitter announced its intention to start making layoffs on Thursday in an email to employees that NBC News was able to get. This move is part of an attempt to “put Twitter on a healthy path.” Employees would get emails on their work status, according to the email.
After completing the purchase of Twitter last week, it had been widely speculated that Musk intended to reduce the company’s 7,500-person workforce. The unknown is the precise number of layoffs.
The lawsuit asks the court to find that Twitter is infringing the WARN Act and to order it to stop. According to the paper, it also aims to stop Twitter from attempting to discharge employees without first alerting them of their rights and the case.
The case was covered by Bloomberg late on Thursday. According to Shannon Liss-Riordan, the lawyer who brought the lawsuit, employees must be aware of their rights.
Bloomberg quoted Liss-Riordan as saying, “We filed this case tonight in an effort to make sure that workers are aware that they should not sign away their rights and that they have an option for pursuing their rights.”
Early on Friday, I asked Twitter for a remark, but they did not react right away. According to the complaint, press sources indicate that mass layoffs would start on Friday.
According to a Twitter employee, the company’s email sent to personnel on Thursday was the first since it was acquired on October 27. The employee remarked, “The home is a complete mess, and everyone is focused on this email.
San Francisco serves as the home base for Twitter. According to the lawsuit, a fifth employee worked in the company’s headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and four of the people identified as plaintiffs were employed in San Francisco.
Source: NBC News