Meta Platforms Inc. and its affiliated content moderation partners in Kenya have been granted a 21-day extension to respond to a high-stakes lawsuit filed by former content moderators. The Employment and Labour Relations Court in Nairobi permitted the delay on Tuesday, rescheduling the case for further directions on November 9.
The litigation, initiated by former South African content moderator Daniel Motaung, alleges a pattern of deception and abuse during the recruitment and employment of staff tasked with sanitizing the Facebook platform. Motaung, representing a group of former and current moderators, claims that Meta, its Irish subsidiary, and Majorel Kenya Ltd engaged in fraudulent recruitment practices that led to the exploitation of workers.
At the core of the petition is the allegation that prospective employees were systematically misled regarding the nature of their work. According to the court filings, job advertisements utilized vague and complex language, deliberately omitting that the roles involved the continuous, “endless loop” review of graphic, violent, and toxic content. The petitioners contend that applicants were not informed they would be working for Facebook or Meta, nor were they warned of the significant risks to their mental health.
The legal challenge describes a process of coerced employment, where recruits were allegedly pressured to relocate to Kenya on short notice without access to full employment contracts or non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) until after their arrival. The petitioners assert that upon reaching the moderation centre in Nairobi, they were forced to sign NDAs under duress, without adequate time to review the documents or consult with legal counsel. Furthermore, the petition highlights that many moderators were required to begin the highly traumatic work almost immediately after arriving in the country, despite the fatigue associated with international travel.
The lawsuit argues that the working conditions at the Nairobi centre fell significantly short of standards applied to moderators in other jurisdictions. The petitioners point to a lack of necessary support mechanisms—such as access to dedicated psychiatrists, psychologists, and mandatory debriefing sessions—which are reportedly available to moderators working for the same company in other regions.
The legal action includes grave allegations of human trafficking, forced labour, and servitude. The moderators are seeking a declaration that their constitutional rights—including the right to dignity, equality, and protection from forced labour—have been violated. They are demanding damages for the lasting mental harm suffered as a result of their exposure to extreme content without appropriate safeguards.
This case is part of a broader, ongoing legal struggle involving 186 content moderators who have previously challenged Meta, its Irish subsidiary, and their former employer, Samasource Kenya EPZ, over similar claims of poor working conditions. Meta has consistently sought to deflect these challenges by contesting the jurisdiction of the Kenyan courts, arguing that it is a foreign entity without direct operations in the country. However, the Kenyan judiciary has repeatedly rejected these attempts to suspend proceedings, affirming that the Employment and Labour Relations Court has the mandate to hear the petition.
As the legal process continues, the case serves as a focal point for the global debate regarding the human cost of digital safety. The moderators, recruited from across Africa to serve the Eastern and Southern African region, are calling for systemic accountability, arguing that the companies prioritized platform safety at the expense of the physical and psychological well-being of the workers behind the screen.
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