Thousands of people were caught up in the mass Twitter layoffs following Elon Musk's acquisition/deconstruction of the platform. Now, according to a j

Age discrimination layoff case against X granted class-action status

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2024-09-05 16:00:05

Thousands of people were caught up in the mass Twitter layoffs following Elon Musk's acquisition/deconstruction of the platform. Now, according to a judge, 150 of them can collectively sue the social media giant for age discrimination in its decision to lay them off.

US District Judge Susan Illston in the Northern District of California decided [PDF] on Tuesday that all Twitter employees over the age of 50 who were caught up in layoffs on November 4, 2022 - "roughly 149 employees," per the judge - can sue Twitter (now X) collectively.

"Plaintiff has shown beyond mere speculation that Twitter may have discriminated against older employees in the November 4, 2022 [layoff], which constitutes a single decision that affected all members of the proposed class," Illston said in her decision. "The Court further finds that the extent to which members of the proposed action will rely on common evidence to prove the alleged discrimination weighs in favor of a collective action here."

That said, the class certification doesn't mean the matter will end up in court as a class-action case: This initial award primarily grants lawyers for the plaintiffs the right to send out letters informing class members they can opt into the lawsuit. Beyond that, class status is still conditional.