Meta is currently embroiled in a legal battle as dozens of its employees have filed a lawsuit alleging the company utilized artificial intelligence systems to unfairly target workers for layoffs. The lawsuit, brought to a federal court in California, claims these AI-driven systems disproportionately affected employees on maternity leave, medical leave, and those with disabilities.
The complaint centers on accusations that Meta employed AI systems to evaluate performance and track employee activity, such as productivity metrics, to determine which staff would be part of a recent workforce reduction. This process, allegedly impacting around 8,000 employees earlier this year, purportedly bypassed traditional manager assessments, relying instead on AI-generated scoring and ranking. Plaintiffs argue that this approach did not properly account for approved leave, unfairly resulting in lower performance evaluations for those on family or medical leave or who had received disability accommodations.
Among the plaintiffs is a scientist who received notice of her termination just two days before her due date. Another case involves an engineer whose performance rating reportedly suffered due to his recovery from an injury, and a manager who claims he was laid off shortly after commencing medical leave. These employees are seeking a court order to pause the layoffs while the legal proceedings continue, along with demands for reinstatement, compensation for lost wages and benefits, and an independent review of Meta’s AI systems.
Meta has countered these allegations, asserting that decisions regarding workforce reductions and organizational matters are made by human judgment, not AI systems. This legal case highlights a growing concern regarding the role of artificial intelligence in workplace decision-making. Critics fear that such automated systems could unintentionally introduce biases against employees taking legally protected leave.