Former Twitter Africa workers who got laid off as part of the worldwide cost-cutting effort following Elon Musk’s takeover haven’t received their severance money in more than seven months, according to CNN.
The previous staff members, who resided in Ghana’s capital Accra, agreed to Twitter’s (TWTR) offer to pay them three months’ severance, the cost of repatriating foreign employees, and legal costs suffered during agreements with the company in late May, according to sources, but they were not given the money or any additional information.
“They literally ghosted us,” according to one former Twitter Africa employee.
“Although Twitter has eventually compensated former employees in different regions, Africa employees have still been left in the dark notwithstanding us eventually agreeing on particular negotiated terms.”
According to the former employees, they grudgingly agreed to the severance package without benefits, despite the fact that it was less than what peers abroad received.
“Twitter was non-responsive until we agreed to the three months because we were all so stressed, exhausted, and tired of the uncertainty, reluctant to take on the extra burdens of a court case, so we felt we had no choice but to settle,” said another former employee.
Former employees talked to CNN on anonymity because they were required to sign nondisclosure agreements as part of their leaving terms.
According to Carla Olympio, an attorney representing the former employees, Twitter or its lawyers last communicated with them in May, right after the deal was reached.
CNN inquired on Twitter about the progress of the severance package for former employees in the Ghana office but got an automated answer – a poop emoji. It is unknown if Twitter still has a public relations section.
Musk tweeted in March that Twitter would answer all press requests with the poop emoji. In October, he closed a deal to acquire the social media site.
Seeking feedback from Ghana’s Ministry of Employment and Labor Relations. According to a representative, the claims are being investigated.
It is unclear if Ghanaian authorities will be able to force Twitter to conform to the settlement. According to the former employees and their attorneys, the offer was never completed.
Only four days after the social network launched a physical office in Accra last November, the dozen or so staff members were laid go.
Some of them said they had come to Ghana from other African countries and relied on their Twitter jobs to maintain their legal status in the country.
“Unfortunately, it appears that after unethically implementing their terminations in violation of their own promises and Ghana’s laws, dragging the negotiation process out for over half a year, now that we have almost settled, they have been completely silent for several weeks,” Olympio said.
Multiple lawsuits have been filed against Twitter and Musk, alleging that the firm has failed to pay former employees what they are owed.
A former US employee filed a proposed class action lawsuit last week, alleging that the business failed to pay the entire amount of severance compensation promised last November prior to mass layoffs.
According to the lawsuit, Twitter offered senior employees severance pay of six months’ base pay plus one week for every year of service, as well as other benefits.
According to the lawsuit, the plaintiff claimed they were only paid for three months. Twitter emailed CNN an automatic feces emoji in response to a request for comment on the case.
Musk told the BBC in April that around 6,000 individuals have been laid off since completing his purchase of the company in late October.
“We’re exploring our options with respect to causes of action against Twitter in various jurisdictions, including Ghana,” Olympio told CNN.
Twitter did not begin negotiating with the African team until after CNN reported in November that they had been given different separation arrangements than those granted to leaving employees in Europe and North America.
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