Twitter says it's reinstated an exec who says she was effectively dismissed after she didn't respond to Elon Musk's 'hardcore' ultimatum

Advertisement
Twitter says it's reinstated an exec who says she was effectively dismissed after she didn't respond to Elon Musk's 'hardcore' ultimatum
Elon Musk.Adrees Latif/Reuters
  • Twitter exec Sinéad McSweeney said she was effectively dismissed for failing to respond to Elon Musk's "hardcore" ultimatum.
  • The company told an Irish court it has reinstated McSweeney as its global VP for public policy.
Advertisement

Twitter says it has reinstated an executive who says she was effectively dismissed for failing to respond to Elon Musk's "hardcore" ultimatum.

The social-media giant told the Irish High Court on Wednesday that it had reinstated Sinéad McSweeney as its global vice president for public policy, a number of Irish publications including The Irish Times reported. She has worked at the company since 2012, according to her LinkedIn.

McSweeney had previously told the court that the company had told her she had submitted a "voluntary resignation" after failing to respond to a company-wide email by new owner Elon Musk, even though she didn't intend to resign.

Complimentary Tech Event
Transform talent with learning that works
Capability development is critical for businesses who want to push the envelope of innovation.Discover how business leaders are strategizing around building talent capabilities and empowering employee transformation.Know More

The email, sent late on November 15, told workers that they would need to be "extremely hardcore" and work "long hours at high intensity" to stay on at the company and asked them to respond to Google form committing to Musk's vision for "Twitter 2.0." If they didn't respond by the end of the business day on November 17, they would be laid off and given three months severance, Twitter said.

McSweeney said she didn't respond because of confusion related to her contract of employment, The Irish Times reported.

Advertisement

The day after the ultimatum's deadline, Twitter emailed McSweeney on her personal account, acknowledging her "voluntary resignation" and saying it accepted her severance package, she said. The company also locked her out of its systems, email, and Dublin office.

After her solicitors sent a letter to the company, Twitter's lawyers acknowledged that she hadn't intended to resign and said the company would restore her access to its systems, but failed to do so, McSweeney had claimed.

A High Court judge granted McSweeney a temporary injunction last Friday to stop Twitter from terminating her contract based on the ultimatum email.

Twitter's lawyers told the court on Wednesday that the company would restore McSweeney's access to its IT systems and Dublin office, per The Irish Times.

Lawyers for both Twitter and McSweeney didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comment on whether McSweeney had regained access.

Advertisement

Insider previously reported that fewer people committed to Twitter 2.0 than Musk and his team had expected, leading to the company's vice-presidents and Musk himself calling some "critical" workers in a desperate bid to persuade them to stay on. Since taking ownership of Twitter in late October, around three-quarters of the company's workforce has been laid off, fired, or has resigned.

{{}}