A former Twitter employee has reportedly received a 550,000 euro settlement, equivalent to approximately $600,000, after being terminated for failing to comply with Elon Musk's demand for an "extremely hardcore" work culture.
The Guardian reported that Gary Rooney, based at Twitter's European headquarters in Dublin, informed Ireland's Workplace Relations Commission that he did not affirmatively respond to the infamous email.
In November 2022, less than a month after completing his $44 billion platform acquisition, Musk emailed employees requesting their commitment to an "extremely hardcore" work pace to develop "the new Twitter" or their resignation.
The billionaire, who rebranded the company as X the following year, stated in the email: "This will mean working long hours at high intensity. Only exceptional performance will constitute a passing grade."
The email further instructed employees to click "yes" on a provided link to signify their commitment to "the new Twitter." Those who failed to do so by the following day would receive a severance package equivalent to three months' salary.
The Guardian reported that the company emailed Rooney three days later that his "decision to resign and accept the voluntary separation offer" had been acknowledged. Rooney subsequently denied resigning his position in response to the company, but Twitter maintained that his failure to click "yes" constituted a resignation, as reported by the Irish Examiner.
Rooney testified that he suspected the email might be malicious software and hesitated to open it, as reported by The Guardian. The Workplace Relations Commission adjudicator determined that Musk's 24-hour deadline for responding to the request was not a reasonable notice period.
'Fork in the Road': A Mass Exodus At Twitter
Rooney testified at a five-day WRC hearing in Dublin that he adored his job before Musk acquired Twitter. Rooney expressed disbelief and fear when he first received the "Fork in the Road" email, suspecting it might be spam or malware.
He confided in a colleague on the company's internal messaging system, stating, "I need to step away for my own sake. I'm deeply troubled by what's happening here." In another message, Rooney predicted, "Twitter 2.0 won't be for you and me."
A spokesperson for Ireland's Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment informed Business Insider that the decision in the case was issued on Monday but will not be publicly released until August 26 to allow both parties ample time to review it thoroughly.
Twitter's Senior Director of People Analytics, Lauren Wegman, testified that Musk sent the "Fork in the Road" email to Irish employees unaffected by the initial 140 layoffs. Of the 270 recipients, 235 opted to leave the company.
Wegman explained that the remaining 35 employees who didn't accept the "Fork in the Road" offer had their resignations accepted. She described a divided workforce, with some embracing the "Twitter 2.0" vision and others opting to leave due to negative sentiments.
Rooney Wins Big Against Musk
WRC adjudicator Michael MacNamee ruled in a 73-page decision that the 24-hour notice period was insufficient. He dismissed Rooney's concerns about Musk's takeover as irrelevant to the termination of his employment.
The $60,000 unfair dismissal award, an Irish record, comprises Rooney's lost remuneration of $38,500 from January 2023 to May 2024 and estimated lost future remuneration of $22,000.
Barry Kenny, a solicitor for Rooney, said he welcomed "the clear and unambiguous finding that my client did not resign from his employment but was unfairly dismissed from his job, notwithstanding his excellent employment record and contribution to the company over the years."
"It is not okay for Mr Musk, or indeed any large company to treat employees in such a manner in this country. The record award reflects the seriousness and the gravity of the case," he said.
This isn't the first time Musk has faced scrutiny for terminating an employee under controversial circumstances. Last year, former Twitter executive Esther Crawford was fired after gaining notoriety for sleeping on the office floor to meet deadlines.
Crawford later criticised Musk's leadership style in a 14-minute video, describing him as lacking empathy and relying heavily on intuition. Musk's history of headline-grabbing terminations at X and Rooney's record-breaking unfair dismissal award has again highlighted the company's employment practices.
Whether Rooney's substantial win will influence Musk's approach to employee terminations remains to be seen.
