A federal judge in California has denied a motion to dismiss a lawsuit that accuses X, the platform previously known as Twitter, of disproportionately terminating older employees following Elon Musk’s acquisition of the company last year.
On Tuesday, US District Judge Susan Illston ruled that the plaintiff, John Zeman, had presented sufficient evidence to suggest that the layoffs affected older workers more significantly, allowing him to continue with the proposed class action.
Zeman’s allegations indicate that X terminated 60 percent of employees aged 50 and older, with nearly 75 percent of those over 60 impacted. In comparison, only 54 percent of workers younger than 50 faced layoffs.
Judge Illston clarified that federal legislation prohibiting age discrimination permits plaintiffs to submit claims of “disparate impact” within a class action lawsuit, a legal point that has generated differing opinions among various courts.
Although the judge dismissed the claim asserting that X intentionally targeted older employees for layoffs, she has granted Zeman an additional month to revise and expand on that accusation.
Shannon Liss-Riordan, Zeman’s attorney, stated, “This decision affirms our position that the discrimination claims can proceed.”
X did not provide a comment when approached for a response.
This lawsuit is one of nearly a dozen filed against X in light of Musk’s decision to cut approximately half of Twitter’s workforce starting last November.
The pending cases include various allegations, such as improper layoff notices and claims that Musk actively forced out workers with disabilities by eliminating remote work options and promoting a stricter workplace culture.
At least two lawsuits have been filed claiming that the company owes severance payments totaling at least $500 million (approximately Rs. 4,100 crore) to former employees. Twitter has denied any wrongdoing in these instances.
Liss-Riordan is also representing around 2,000 ex-employees of Twitter who have initiated similar legal actions against the company through arbitration.
© Thomson Reuters 2023
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