Meta Platforms is facing a legal challenge over its 2025 layoffs, with allegations that older employees were disproportionately impacted. The case brings renewed focus on age-related bias in workforce reduction decisions across the tech industry.
The lawsuit has been filed by Nicolas Franchet, a former senior director who claims that employees aged 40 and above were more likely to be laid off during the company’s restructuring. According to the filing, internal data shared with affected staff suggested a higher likelihood of job loss for older workers compared to younger colleagues.
Franchet, who was in his mid-50s at the time, had spent over a decade with the company and held leadership roles across key locations. Despite a strong track record, he was reportedly assigned a low performance rating shortly before the layoffs. The lawsuit argues that such classifications were used to justify terminations under the company’s performance-based approach.
The financial-impact forms a major part of the claim. Franchet alleges that his exit led to the loss of unvested stock grants worth nearly $12 million. These equity awards were part of a recognition package and were forfeited following his termination.
The layoffs were part of a broader move led by CEO Mark Zuckerberg to cut around 5 per cent of the workforce. The company had positioned the exercise as a shift towards performance-driven decisions.
Meta has not publicly responded to the specific allegations. The case now moves into early legal stages, where internal data and decision-making processes are expected to be closely examined.
The lawsuit adds to a series of similar cases in the technology sector, where companies have faced scrutiny over whether layoffs were influenced by age rather than performance.
