Meta Says “The Future Is for Everyone.” Unless You’re on Medical Leave.

A pregnant Meta employee says she was laid off two days before giving birth. Another manager was cut sixteen days into approved medical leave. A third says they were warned: take the leave and you’ll end up on the list.They’re among 26 former Meta employees suing over layoffs they say were influenced by AI and workplace tracking data, including keystrokes, browser activity, and AI usage. Meta says humans made the final decisions based on performance ratings and organizational needs.The workers also face a problem: proving what the system actually did. A federal judge rejected their effort to rely on claims about decisions they weren’t present for, leaving key questions about how Meta’s internal systems influenced the layoffs unresolved.Juan and Kate break down the lawsuit, Meta’s “betting on people” campaign, its $115 million workforce academy for data-center trades, and the contradiction between cutting employees while investing heavily in AI infrastructure.ABOUT SLOP WORLDAI news with receipts. Juan Faisal and Kate Cook fact-check the claims Big Tech is making about AI, follow the money, and break down what it actually means for your job, your data, and your daily life. From leaked data and corporate cover-ups to AI schools, stolen identities, and layoff headlines that don't add up, we cover the AI stories that everyone's hyping but nobody's verifying. New episodes every Thursday.DISCLAIMERAll content is commentary and opinion based on publicly available documents, interviews, and verifiable sources. References to "scams," "grifts," or related terms reflect our editorial opinion, not legal conclusions. Anyone featured who believes a statement is inaccurate may contact us.CHAPTERS00:00 Meta Laid People Off on Approved Medical Leave01:16 The Federal Lawsuit and The Room Where It Happened02:37 8,000 Layoffs, $135B AI Bet, Secret Surveillance03:49 Linh Doan and The Human Decision Defense05:08 Meta's "The Future is for Everyone" Ad Campaign07:38 The Real Reason Meta Launched a $115M Trade School09:22 Why Meta Is Training Blue-Collar Workers12:13 Betting on Data, Not on People13:14 A Blank Check to Fire You by Spreadsheet