Elon Musk and his social media firm X have agreed to settle with former employees. The workers had sued the company for $500 million in severance pay.
The deal was revealed in a court filing on Wednesday. Both parties asked the San Francisco appeals court to delay a scheduled hearing. They want time to complete the settlement paperwork.
Mass job cuts sparked lawsuit
The conflict followed Musk’s decision in 2022 to cut about 6,000 jobs. That represented more than half of the company’s workforce. Many of the dismissed workers challenged the severance packages offered.
So far, lawyers for the staff and representatives of X have not commented.
Court records confirmed the parties had reached a settlement in principle. They also said detailed negotiations are under way.
Settlement terms not disclosed
The details of the deal remain confidential. Any final version will still need court approval.
The lawsuit was led by former employee Courtney McMillian. She argued thousands of workers were denied benefits promised under the severance plan.
The claim said staff should have received up to six months of salary and benefits. Instead, most received at most one month. Some got nothing.
Musk’s cuts reshaped company structure
The layoffs dismantled important teams such as trust and safety, human rights, and media relations. Musk’s move was among the first major job cuts in the wider technology sector’s drive to cut costs.
Other firms later followed the same path. Google, Microsoft, and Facebook dismissed tens of thousands of staff. The cuts came after heavy hiring during the pandemic’s digital surge.
Musk used same tactics in Washington
Earlier this year, Musk briefly led President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency. The office was created to cut government spending and reduce staff. Musk took the same approach there, overseeing thousands of federal layoffs.
