26 Meta employees sue, alleging AI-driven layoff picks hit workers on medical and parental leave
26 Meta employees sue, alleging AI-driven layoff picks hit workers on medical and parental leave
Publish Date: 2026-07-14 17:43:00
Source Domain: toronto.citynews.ca
- A group of 26 Meta employees has filed a lawsuit alleging that the company used artificial intelligence systems to select employees for layoffs, disproportionately targeting those on medical, parental, or family leave.
- The lawsuit claims Meta used internal AI systems, along with monitoring data and performance rankings, to determine who would be laid off without adequately accounting for employees on protected leave.
- Many of the employees in the lawsuit had taken pregnancy or parental leave, reducing their measured output during those periods. Meta did not accommodate their protected leave status when scoring employees for layoffs.
- The lawsuit states that this has violated several state and federal laws, including the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act.
- The complaint also highlights “disparate impact liability,” a concept which protects against practices that unintentionally cause disproportionate harm to protected classes, even when they appear neutral.
- Despite efforts by the Trump administration to reduce enforcement of disparate impact, this lawsuit shows that such claims can still be pursued in courts.
- The lawsuit argues that Meta’s AI-based selection process disproportionately affects women, who are more likely to take pregnancy and caregiving leave.
- The plaintiffs are asking for a preservation of their current employment status pending arbitration, as they argue the layoffs would cause irreversible harm.
