Meta sued by 26 workers alleging AI-driven layoffs discriminated against employees on protected leave

According to CNBC, a coalition of current and former Meta employees sued the company, alleging it used artificial intelligence in its latest round of layoffs in a discriminatory way. In a lawsuit filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, attorneys for 26 unnamed workers said the plaintiffs were among the 10% of Meta’s workforce cut in May and alleged the company’s internal AI systems did not account for approved absences when selecting employees for termination, potentially violating laws tied to protected leave, pregnancy and disability discrimination. The complaint said the tools relied on inputs including performance ratings, productivity metrics, “AI-native” ratings and AI-token consumption, which the plaintiffs argued could be depressed for employees on medical or family leave or with reduced output due to disability; the plaintiffs are seeking a preliminary injunction to maintain their employment pending an independent audit and arbitration. A Meta spokesperson said the claims lack merit and that workforce and organizational decisions were made by people, not AI.