Former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey apologizes amid mass layoffs | Twitter
Former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has taken to the platform recently acquired by billionaire Elon Musk to apologize for the state of the site, which has laid off thousands of workers.
On Saturday Dorsey published a series of tweets in response to the layoffs in Twitter’s workforce, which began on Friday. As many as half of the company’s 7,500 employees could be laid off since Musk bought the company for $44 billion last week.
“People on Twitter, past and present, are strong and resilient,” Dorsey wrote. “They will always find a way no matter how difficult the moment is. I understand that many people are angry with me.
“I own the responsibility for why everyone is in this situation: I increased the size of the company too quickly. I apologize for that.”
Dorsey added: “I am grateful to, and love, everyone who has ever worked at Twitter. I don’t expect it to be mutual at this moment… or ever… and I understand,” along with a heart emoji.
The response to Dorsey’s comments has been mixed. Many users have blamed Dorsey for problems at Twitter after being bought by Musk.
“Ouch. Too little. Too late,” wrote a user.
Another user wrote: “Dude, you suck.”
A number of divisions at Twitter suffered deep cuts or were eliminated entirely, including the company’s human rights and algorithm ethics teams.
At least one class-action lawsuit has been filed against Twitter on behalf of former employees who say they were not given adequate notice of the termination.
“Elon Musk has a history of violating California labor laws, as Tesla has been hit with a shocking number of sexual and racial harassment lawsuits,” said prominent attorney Lisa Bloom, who confirmed to the Guardian that she has been in contact with several Twitter employees . .
“His workers are human beings who are all entitled to respectful treatment. This time, a hard-hitting class action will finally teach him that even the world’s richest man is not above the law.”
British Twitter workers facing job losses have been given three days to nominate a representative for a formal consultation on their employment.
Musk has defended the layoffs, tweeting that laid-off employees are getting three months’ severance pay as the company reportedly loses over $4 million per day.
But several companies have announced they will no longer advertise on Twitter, fearing that misinformation and hate speech will spread on the app as protections against each are reduced.
Audi, General Motors, General Mills and other advertisers have stopped advertising on the site.
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and other groups have also pushed for advertisers to freeze their spending on the site in the face of concerns about hate speech.