Elon Musk’s social media service, X, moved this week to settle thousands of cases brought by former employees who sued after the company dismissed them during his 2022 takeover.
The settlements are an about-face for the billionaire, whose company fought with former employees for years over whether it owed them the severance payments that were outlined in his agreement to buy the social platform, then known as Twitter.
After acquiring Twitter, Mr. Musk pared its work force to fewer than 2,000 employees, from about 7,500. A class-action lawsuit filed in 2023 argued that the billionaire owed his former workers about $500 million in severance payments.
X agreed to settle that case, according to a legal document filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on Wednesday. The settlement amount was not disclosed.
The company also reached a settlement agreement with more than 2,000 former employees who were fighting for severance in arbitration cases, according to terms communicated to former workers on Thursday, two people familiar with the case said. That settlement amount, which has not been made public, would cover almost all of the severance payments for workers involved in the case, including interest, the people said.
Mr. Musk’s legal battle with former senior Twitter executives over $128 million in severance payments is continuing.
A representative for X did not respond to a request for comment. Lawyers representing the former employees and X did not respond to requests for comment.
Kate Conger is a technology reporter based in San Francisco. She can be reached at [email protected].
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