Twitter is accused of ghosting former African employees after laying them off

Twitter is said to have breached an agreement with former employees of its African office, according to CNN. Months after being laid off, the former employees of Twitter’s African office are still awaiting their severance pay. These employees claim that the company has “ghosted” them, with little communication and no progress on the agreed settlement.

Twitter’s employees received the shocking news in November that the company was planning to lay off a significant portion of its workforce. The layoffs were part of Elon Musk’s plan to “put the company on a healthier path,” and it was estimated that up to 50% of employees could be affected.

Surprisingly, the affected employees are about a dozen people. They had spent just three days physically working in the office before receiving the disheartening email and subsequently being locked out of the company’s servers.

Carla Olympio, an attorney representing the former employees, disclosed that progress has been stagnant since the settlement was agreed upon, and Twitter has maintained complete silence on the matter since May. The Ministry of Employment and Labor Relations in Ghana has initiated an investigation into the claims raised by the affected employees, seeking resolution and justice.

Twitter’s handling of severance pay for laid-off employees is raising eyebrows. The company’s lack of compensation and prolonged silence is reflecting poorly on its commitment to its former employees. This raises concerns about fair treatment and highlights the challenges faced by tech companies navigating global expansion.

The acquisition led to the unfortunate layoff of all staff members from Twitter Africa. The suddenness of these layoffs, combined with the lack of timely compensation, has left some of these employees in a state of uncertainty and financial hardship. This personnel issue also cast a shadow over Twitter’s reputation and raised concerns about its treatment of employees, especially in light of the growing competition posed by Meta’s Threads platform.

If this issue proceeds to court, it will mark another case of Twitter employees suing the company over unpaid remuneration or workers’ benefits. In our previous report last month, we highlighted how employees sought legal action against the company to claim tens of millions of dollars in bonuses that were promised but not paid.

Edited: To include Tapiwa’s report in June 2023