In a recent development regarding former Twitter staff suing Elon Musk for allegedly withholding $500 million in severance payments after his acquisition of the company in 2022, a US judge dismissed the case, stating that the employees did not prove their claims were protected by federal law. This ruling marks a legal victory for Musk, who faced multiple lawsuits from former employees and vendors over promised payments post-acquisition, sparking a wave of legal battles.
The complaint, initially filed in 2023 by Courtney McMillian, a former executive at Twitter who oversaw employee benefits, alleged that Musk’s company, now called X, had only provided one month’s worth of severance pay instead of the promised benefits, including two months of salary and contributions towards health insurance. Despite urging from Musk’s legal team to dismiss the case, the judge ruled in favor of Musk, stating that the Employee Retirement Income Security Act did not apply to the claims as argued by the plaintiffs, implying that the workers may have alternative legal avenues to pursue their grievances.
While this case has been dismissed, other legal battles against Twitter for similar alleged breaches of employment laws are still pending. Judge Thompson’s ruling suggested that the dismissed employees may have other opportunities to litigate their claims in different legal proceedings, indicating that the broader issue of worker compensation and company obligations remains a contentious and evolving legal landscape in the tech industry.