When Elon Musk took over as head of Twitter, he cut the workforce by around 70%. Many employees were fired without any clear reason, but one of them decided to challenge Musk’s decision in court. As a result, Twitter was ordered to pay him a huge fine for wrongful termination. Twitter has been ordered to pay over 550,000 euros (around Rs 50 million) to Gary Rooney, a former senior employee at the company’s European headquarters in Ireland, after the company ruled that he was wrongfully fired. The case stems from Rooney’s departure after Elon Musk bought the social media platform.
Musk pushed for Twitter 2.0 when he took over the company in October 2022. Musk sent an email to all employees outlining a tough new work environment he called “Twitter 2.0.” He urged employees to commit to working long hours and high intensity hours, and asked them to click “yes” on a link in the email if they agreed to the new terms. Employees who did not respond were informed that they would be considered to have resigned and would be paid three months’ severance pay.
Rooney, who had been with Twitter since 2013 and was director of the Source to Pay division in Dublin, did not click “yes” on the link. Three days later, on 19 November 2022, he received an email from Twitter saying his resignation had been accepted and his access to the company’s systems had been suspended. Rooney disputed this, claiming he had not intended to resign and had not accepted any offer of separation. In a message to the company a week later, he expressed shock at the situation.
Rooney’s case was brought before Ireland’s Workplace Relations Commission (WRC), where he gave evidence over a five-day hearing. He explained that he had initially been wary of Musk’s emails because he thought they might be spam or malware. He also expressed unhappiness with the direction Twitter was heading under Musk’s leadership, suggesting the new environment was not a good fit for him.
The WRC ruled in Rooney’s favour, saying it was unfair to give employees 24 hours’ notice for such a major decision. The fine of €550,131, the largest in Ireland, will compensate Rooney for his lost income from January 2023 to May 2024, as well as estimated future losses. Rooney’s lawyers stressed that the ruling sends a strong message that large companies, including those led by influential figures like Musk, cannot mistreat employees in Ireland. When asked for comment, Twitter replied: “We’re busy right now, check back soon.”
Publisher:
Ankita Chakravarti
Release date:
August 14, 2024
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