Former Twitter Africa Employees Express Discontent over Severance Package

In a recent development, former employees of Twitter Africa have expressed their dissatisfaction with the severance package they received after being laid off. According to a report byCNN, the affected workers were offered three months of severance pay, repatriation costs, and legal expenses incurred during negotiations with the company.

The layoffs, which occurred shortly after Elon Musk assumed control of Twitter in October 2022, affected thousands of employees. Twitter's office in Ghana, the only African location for the company, witnessed a significant reduction in its workforce. The move came as a surprise to the staff, who were informed of their termination without any information regarding their exit packet or future steps.

CNN's sources revealed that despite Twitter offering more generous severance packages with additional benefits to laid-off staff in other countries, the former Twitter Africa employees reluctantly agreed to the package offered to them. The frustration stemmed from a lack of responsiveness from Twitter, which left the workers feeling ignored and exhausted. Eventually, they chose to settle for the less favorable terms rather than endure the uncertainty and potential burden of a court case.

Former Twitter Africa employees expressed their disappointment, emphasizing that they had agreed to specific negotiated terms only after being left in the dark for an extended period. One employee stated, "Although Twitter has eventually settled former staff in other locations, Africa staff have still been left in the lurch despite us eventually agreeing to specific negotiated terms."

CNN reached out to Twitter for comment on the status of the severance package for the former Ghana office employees. However, they received an automated response, a poop emoji, raising questions about the current state of Twitter's media relations department.

It is worth noting that in March, Musk tweeted that Twitter would respond to all press inquiries with the poop emoji. Subsequently, Musk completed the acquisition of the social media platform in October.

CNN also sought a comment from Ghana's Ministry of Employment and Labor Relations. A spokesperson confirmed that they are actively investigating the claims made by the former employees.

The legal representative for the affected employees, Carla Olympio, informed CNN that there has been minimal progress since the settlement was agreed upon in May. Twitter has not finalized the offer and has maintained "complete silence" since then, leaving the former employees in a state of uncertainty.