Twitter boss Elon Musk has slashed the company’s paid parental leave policy from 20 weeks to just 14 days, according to Internal company documents.
The San Francisco-based social media platform altered its previous policy to “whatever is required by law in the region where the employees work, along with a ‘top up’ of two weeks of leave,” wrote New York Times reporter Kate Conger, who cited the internal memo.
There is no national policy for paid family leave. However, the Family and Medical Leave Act gives certain employees “unpaid, job-protected leave for specified family and medical reasons” for a period of up to 12 weeks.
Musk’s change in policy puts Twitter workers seeking additional paid leave at the mercy of the state in which they live.
There are 12 states that offer some form of paid family and medical leave. In California, state law allows employees to take up to eight weeks of paid leave.
New York and New Jersey allows for 12 weeks of paid leave, as well as unpaid, job-protected leave of up to 26 weeks.
Rhode Island has the most generous policy, allowing workers 30 weeks of paid leave.
Reaction online to the billionaire’s new policy was scathing.
“Two weeks! What do they expect 2 weeks and the child will be going to the bathroom on his own.?!..as an ex tweep and as a parent I cannot relate to this,” one Twitter user wrote.
“As a former Twitter employee that oversaw US LOA (leave of absence) and rolled out the 20 week policy in 2016, this is DEPRESSING,” tweeted Tina Forrest.
“I am so sorry to hear of the amazing policies/programs that are being dismantled.”
Another Twitter user blasted Musk as “misogynistic and anti-worker.”
One current Twitter employee took to the social media platform Blind to rail against Musk, writing sarcastically: “Still love the smartest man on the planet?”
“Elon can go throw himself off a cliff,” another Blind user wrote.
Other Twitter users blasted Musk for his previous statements about the urgency of increasing the global birthrate.
The Post has sought comment from Twitter.
Tech firms vying for top talent have historically been among the most generous private sector companies in offering parental leave to their employees that go above and beyond those required by law.
New: Twitter used to offer employees 20 weeks of paid parental leave. That’s being changed to whatever is required by law in the region where the employees work, along with a “top up” of two weeks of leave, per internal docs.
— kate conger (@kateconger) April 25, 2023
Google’s parental leave policy allows for fathers to take up to 16 weeks while mothers can get paid while bonding with their newborn for 24 weeks.
Brooklyn-based online marketplace Etsy offers its employees a generous leave policy of 26 weeks fully paid.
Musk, one of the world’s richest tycoons by virtue of his stake in electric car maker Tesla, bought Twitter in a highly leveraged deal worth $44 billion last fall.
Since taking over, Musk has instituted radical changes, including laying off more than 70% of the company’s workforce — which numbered 7,500 before the acquisition last year and which has now been whittled down to some 2,000 workers.
The Twitter boss has also made several cost-cutting moves including revoking perks and privileges such as allowances for things like “wellness,” home internet and WiFi costs, companywide activities known as “Camp Twitter,” and daycare costs.
Twitter has also slashed mobile phone allowances as well as money meant to cover work-related travel expenses.
Musk’s cash-strapped company has been looking for ways to boost revenue after advertisers fled the site in the weeks and months following the mogul’s acquisition of the company.
The MTA announced on Thursday that it will no longer provide real-time service alerts on Twitter since the platform began charging an exorbitant price for the integral feature that allows such posts.
The Open Magazine of India by Artmotion Network (https://magazine.armotion.com/)
