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July 19, 2026

Anna Murray 

Meta was sued in federal court in Oakland, California, by a group of present and former employees. Plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed on July 13 claim that Meta discriminatorily used artificial intelligence in its most recent round of layoffs.

Meta declared that, beginning in May, it would lay off 8,000 workers, or around 10% of its total staff. The attorneys for the 26 unidentified employees filed a lawsuit in the United States Northern District Court of California. The plaintiffs alleged that the social media giant's "constellation of internal artificial-intelligence systems" failed to consider approved absences when determining which employees to lay off.

The plaintiffs' attorneys claimed that Meta had broken many statutes about protected leave and discrimination against pregnant women and people with disabilities. Approximately 50% of the plaintiffs had taken time off due to pregnancy or providing care.