26 former Meta Platforms employees sued the company in federal court in Oakland, California, accusing it of using AI-powered software in a layoff process that allegedly hit workers with disabilities and people who took medical leave harder than others, according to Reuters.
The complaint says Meta relied on factors such as productivity and AI token usage when it began cutting thousands of jobs earlier this year.
The former employees argue those metrics worked against people who missed time because of medical conditions, even when those absences had legal protection.
Meta said earlier this year that it planned to cut 10% of its global workforce, or nearly 8,000 jobs, starting in May. The company also said more reductions would follow later.
The plaintiffs filed the case anonymously. They accuse Meta of violating federal and state laws that ban discrimination and retaliation against workers with disabilities, employees who take medical leave and pregnant workers.
The group includes former employees from six states, including California and New York, as well as the District of Columbia. Their lawsuit places Meta’s layoff process under fresh legal scrutiny at a time when large technology companies are using more internal data, automation and AI-related performance measures in workforce decisions.
According to Beinsure, the case turns on whether Meta’s selection criteria treated protected absences as lower productivity or weaker AI engagement.
That distinction matters because a neutral-looking layoff model still creates legal risk if it penalizes disability-related leave, pregnancy or protected medical absence.
Meta rejected the allegations. A company spokesperson said the claims lack merit and denied that AI made the layoff decisions. “Workforce management and organizational decisions were and are made by people, not AI,” the spokesperson said.
