Meta lawsuit says AI targeted disabled workers in layoffs
A new lawsuit filed against Meta accuses the tech giant of using an artificial intelligence system to guide its mass layoff decisions, and that the system disproportionately targeted employees with disabilities and other medical-related issues.
The layoffs, which first came to light in April and go into effect July 22, impacted roughly 10% of the company's workforce.
Here's what you should know about the allegations in the lawsuit.
Lawsuit: AI, not humans, decided who should be cut
According to the lawsuit filed July 13 in a federal court in Oakland, California, 26 current and former Meta employees are suing the company, alleging that it used a "constellation of internal artificial-intelligence systems" to decide who should be laid off.
Whereas human intervention could've made cuts based on merit and quality of work, the AI tools combed through various employee data points to "score, rank, and select" those who would be laid off, the lawsuit alleges.
Among the tools cited in the lawsuit are a large language model assistant known as "Metamate;" an employee-trained "second brain" that tracks employee communications and work; and a tool that assigns a productivity score based on keystrokes, screen monitoring, emails and internet search history.
The lawsuit alleges that those tools glossed over certain protected time-off statuses, including employees living with disabilities and those with other medical considerations such as pregnancy, temporary injuries, medical diagnoses, or caring for a sick family member.
"The result was that employees who took protected leaves were disproportionately selected for layoff, based on scoring that not only failed to account for their protected leaves, but in effect penalized the employees for exercising their legal rights to these leaves," the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit accuses Meta of violating laws recently adopted in California and New York that require companies to thoroughly test AI systems for potential biases. The 26 plaintiffs are based in six states, including California and New York.
In a statement shared with USA TODAY, Meta said, "These claims lack merit and are not based on facts," adding, "Workforce management and organizational decisions were and are made by people, not AI."
Plaintiffs seek to delay job losses
Meta's employment terms require workers to arbitrate legal filings on an individual basis, meaning the 26 employees are not allowed to pursue a class-action lawsuit. The plaintiffs are instead asking that a court temporarily block their termination while an independent audit of the AI-assisted tools allegedly used in the layoff decisions plays out.
The lawsuit argues that, in effect, to be laid off while dealing with a medical emergency is doubly harmful, as the very medical emergency that resulted in the layoff in the first place similarly prevents the person from looking for new work.
"An employee undergoing significant medical treatment, or caring for a days or weeks old newborn, or providing around the clock care for a family member … cannot also be told that during this exact same time period they must look for new work," the lawsuit states.
How many layoffs will Meta see this year?
Meta conducted its first wave of sweeping layoffs on May 20. The Facebook and Instagram owner laid off about 10% of its global workforce, or close to 8,000 employees, in that initial round, with separation taking effect July 22.
Back in April, three sources familiar with the company's internal plans told Reuters that more layoffs were expected in the second half of the year.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg has since said additional layoffs will not happen this year, according to more recent reporting from Reuters.
Meta's pivot to AI
Meanwhile, Zuckerberg is pumping hundreds of billions of dollars into AI as he seeks to dramatically reshape his company's inner workings around the technology, reflecting a broader pattern among major U.S. companies this year, particularly in the tech sector.
However, earlier this week, the company quickly rolled back a new Instagram feature dubbed Muse AI after significant backlash from users.
"Earlier this week, we announced that one way for people to generate images in Meta AI is by @-mentioning public Instagram accounts that they want to reference. Our intent was to provide a useful creative tool and to give people control over whether their public content could be referenced in this way," a Meta statement obtained by USA TODAY on July 10 said. "We've heard the feedback that this feature missed the mark, so it's no longer available."
Reuters contributed to this report.
Drew Pittock covers national trending news for USA TODAY. He can be reached at DPittock@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Meta lawsuit says AI targeted disabled workers in layoffs
Reporting by Drew Pittock, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect
This story was originally published July 14, 2026 at 7:59 PM.