In a sign that laying off half the company might not have been the best idea, “dozens” of Twitter employees savvy on Friday have reportedly been asked to return this weekend.
While the move will only bring back a tiny fraction of the roughly 3,700 people who would have been made redundant following Elon Musk’s acquisition of the app and website, it appears to be a tacit acknowledgment that the decision of the world’s richest man to dump the company may have been rushed.
Bloomberg spoke to people familiar with the matter, who said some of those asked to return were apparently fired by mistake, while others who were dumped were actually needed in the future. Musk’s $8-per-month paying speech for Twitter.
The SpaceX baron – who has surrounded himself with close friends and advisers on Twitter to handle the thing – said paid subscribers would appear more prominently on timelines and that, among other things, he wanted to offer longer blogs through Twitter.
Like many layoff reports from Twitter and elsewhere, it’s been difficult to get confirmation of hard numbers and details, and this layoff reminder is no different. We contacted Twitter, but with its communications team virtually wiped out, it’s unclear if our questions will even be seen.
It appears that Twitter’s management panicked a bit, based on what were allegedly leaked messages from the company’s internal Slack workspace over the weekend: after getting the green light from Upstairs, senior executives asked the tweeps if there was anyone they could fire back to help with product development.
“Sorry to @- everyone this weekend, but I wanted to let it be known that we have the opportunity to ask people who were [let go] if they’ll be back,” one official told her co-workers. “I need to get the names and rationales together by 4:00 p.m. PST Sunday. I’ll do some research, but if any of you have been in contact with people who might be coming back and who we think can help, please name tomorrow before 4 p.m.
“I think we could use Android and iOS help,” she added in the note, as shared for the first time by journalist Casey Newton on Twitter.
Forced to come back?
Twitter’s layoffs are covered by California and US federal WARN laws, which state that companies employing more than 100 people who experience a mass layoff — such as laying off 500 or more employees in a month — must give 60 days’ notice to those workers, or 60 days’ wages in lieu of this warning.
Former staff members have already filed a lawsuit against Twitter alleging violations of the WARN Act, although an email sent to Twitter employees may contain a loophole that makes it more difficult to hear this legal case .
“Today is your last day of employment with the Company, however, you will remain employed by Twitter and will receive compensation and benefits until your separation date of February 2, 2023,” a copy of the posted letter said. by Business Insider.
“Although you are not expected to work during the non-work notice period, you are still required to comply with all company policies, including the employee handbook and code of conduct,” Twitter told the laid off employees.
What this means for employees invited to return is unclear. According to federal WARN Act regulations, “an employee has a ‘reasonable expectation of recall’ when he or she understands, by notice or industry practice, that his or her employment with the employer has been temporarily terminated and that ‘he/she will be recalled to the same or similar position.’
Twitter’s email to affected employees could be read as implying that recalls were possible, since tweeps are still employees until February, and alternatively that they weren’t, since there is no no mention made that reminders were on the table.
How this will apply to recalled staff is unclear, but it could mean that making a big counter-offer to return, or turning down the request, would give Twitter a reason to fire those staff without having to pay them for the rest. of the indemnity period. The delay can also settle the issue of 60 days notice.
We contacted the Department of Labor to learn more about the rights of Twitter employees terminated under the WARN Act and their connection to the recalls.
Finally, Musk has claims Twitter usage has been on the rise since its takeover. A report tells us that over 15 million monetizable daily active users have joined since the second quarter of 2022, according to an internal document, bringing the total to over 250 million.
And finally, finally, the tycoon Tesla has tweeted that even though he’s apparently voted Democrat a lot in the past, for the 2022 US midterms people should (in his opinion) vote Republican to balance out the Democratic president. An incredibly and depressingly oversimplified view of American politics today.
All the while, he continues to pull as many levers and push as many buttons as possible at once in an effort to reshape Twitter in a way that appeals to everyone all the time. ®
#Twitter #asks #staff #return #accidental #layoff