Kenya: Lawsuit alleges discriminatory hiring practices after Meta reportedly directed Majorel not to hire former Sama content moderators
"Meta Is Being Sued in Kenya, Again", 21 Mar 2023
When David, a content moderator, heard that his company, Sama, would be ending its contract with Meta, he became one of 260 employees who had to start the search for another job. David, who asked that his real name not be used for fear of retaliation...
David says the work was difficult, he felt he cultivated a unique skillset, which he hoped to parlay into a similar position with Majorel, the Luxembourg-based outsourcing company that would be taking up the Meta moderation contract in Nairobi...
But despite his experience... David never heard back from Majorel. In fact, none of his colleagues at Sama, many of whom had applied to jobs at Majorel, were called for interviews or received offers from Meta’s new contractor...
A new case filed by UK-based nonprofit Foxglove Legal and the Kenyan law firm Nzili and Sumbi Advocates on behalf of 43 of Sama’s content moderators, including David, alleges that the rumors David and his colleagues heard are not only true, but that Majorel explicitly told its recruiters to avoid candidates from Sama. The petition alleges that the end of the Sama contract was not, as Meta and Sama said, an issue of redundancy, but a way to penalize workers for organizing and speaking up. The suit names Sama, Majorel, and Meta.
According to the filing, Sama never issued a redundancy notice. The suit also alleges that Majorel, in avoiding Sama employees, was engaging in discriminatory hiring practices, and that Meta instructed Majorel not to hire any former Sama employees.
Meta spokesperson Ben Walters declined to comment on whether Meta directly instructed Majorel to avoid Sama employees. Sama and Majorel did not respond to a request for comment.
In text messages shared with the legal team and seen by WIRED, recruiters for Majorel told prospective candidates from Sama that they wouldn’t be considered...
In Kenya, many moderators who have lost their jobs now face deportation...
[Former Sama content moderator Daniel] Motaung [filed] a lawsuit with the Kenyan labor court earlier last year... alleg[ing] that Sama engaged in union-busting and that its working conditions constituted forced labor and human trafficking. Sama has denied the allegations, while Meta has distanced itself from the case...