Twitter Africa Staff Left Stranded: Nairobi, KenyaCNN After seven months, Twitter Africa’s laid-off workers have not received severance pay. CNN learned this from multiple sources.
In late May, Twitter‘s former Accra-based employees accepted three months’ severance pay, repatriation costs for foreign staff, and legal fees. The company has not paid them or communicated with them.
Former Twitter Africa employee “They literally ghosted us.” Unlike former employees in other regions, the African staff remains uncertain despite reaching a specific negotiated agreement.
“Twitter was non-responsive until we agreed to the three months’ severance,” said another ex-employee. We reluctantly settled without benefits due to stress, exhaustion, and uncertainty. No choice.”
Since they signed non-disclosure agreements upon leaving the company, the former employees remain anonymous.
Carla Olympio, an attorney for the former employees, said Twitter and its lawyers last communicated in May after the settlement.
CNN asked Twitter about the Ghana office employees’ severance package. The automated response was a poop emoji. Twitter may have a media relations department.
Musk tweeted in March that Twitter would answer press inquiries with the poop emoji. He bought the social media platform in October.
CNN contacted Ghana’s Ministry of Employment and Labor Relations. A spokesperson confirmed they are investigating the claims.
Since the former employees and their attorney claim the offer was never finalized, Ghanaian authorities may not be able to force Twitter to comply.
Twitter laid off 12 team members four days after opening its Accra office in November. Some moved from other African countries and relied on Twitter jobs to stay legal in Ghana.
“It appears that after unethically implementing their terminations in violation of their own promises and Ghana’s laws, dragging out the negotiation process for over half a year, there has been complete silence from them for several weeks,” Olympio said.
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Twitter and Musk are being sued by former employees for not paying severance.
A former US employee filed a class-action lawsuit alleging that the company did not pay the full severance benefits promised before mass layoffs in November. Instead of six months of base pay plus one week for every year of service, the plaintiff received only three months.
Twitter sent CNN an automated poop emoji response to the lawsuit.
Musk told the BBC that 6,000 people had been laid off since he bought the company in late October.
“We’re exploring our options for legal action against Twitter in various jurisdictions, including Ghana,” Olympio told CNN.
Twitter and the African team didn’t begin negotiations until CNN reported in November that Twitter offered different separation terms to Africa than Europe and North America.
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