Elon Musk’s Twitter Settles Lawsuit Over Employee Severance Pay

Thousands of former Twitter employees who were let go following Elon Musk’s 2022 acquisition have reached a settlement with the company, now known as X. The mass layoffs, which accounted for nearly 60% of the workforce, primarily affected the content moderation and communications teams.

The employees accused X of failing to provide adequate information about changes to their severance plan and not adhering to the existing plan following Musk’s takeover. Courtney McMillian, former Head of People Experience, and Ronald Cooper, a former operations manager, were among the plaintiffs who claimed that X owes over $500 million in collective severance pay to approximately 6,000 former employees.

Initially dismissed in July 2024, the case left room for McMillian to file another amended lawsuit, which was set to appear before a federal appellate court next month, as reported by Bloomberg Law. The original severance agreement promised two months of base pay, with an extra week per year worked at the company; however, the lawsuit alleges that many employees only received one month’s pay.

X is also grappling with multiple employment disputes and potential legal issues. In 2024, former top executives including CEO Parag Agrawal, Chief Financial Officer Ned Segal, Chief Legal Counsel Vijaya Gadde, and General Counsel Sean Edgett filed a separate lawsuit seeking over $128 million in unpaid severance.

The platform is also under investigation for alleged “organized interference” in France and faces a lawsuit alleging negligence in handling child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and slow responses to reports.

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