Former Facebook moderator files lawsuit against Meta for exploitation

A former Facebook moderator from South Africa has filed a lawsuit against Meta. Daniel Motaung accuses the company of exploitation and human trafficking, because the man is said to have worked ‘under appalling conditions’.

A court in the Kenyan capital Nairobi is hearing the case. Motaung worked for Sama, a San Francisco company hired by Meta to moderate Facebook posts. That company has an office in Nairobi. In addition to Meta, the South African has also charged Sama with exploitation and human trafficking.

The company allegedly targeted poor people from Kenya, South Africa, Ethiopia, Somalia and Uganda with misleading vacancies. They were reportedly never told that they would be working as Facebook moderators and that as part of their job they would have to watch and rate shocking content, writes The Washington Post.

Time wrote an article in February about the working conditions in the office where Motaung worked. This showed that several employees have suffered trauma as a result of their work. Also, Sama would not have listened to the advice of therapists in the workplace to let employees take breaks throughout the day so that they would not be constantly exposed to shocking images and messages. Employees have left en masse because of the poor salary and poor working conditions, Time writes.

The former moderator said Tuesday that in the first video he had to review, someone was beheaded. After six months, he was fired for trying to unionize with other workers. It is also mentioned that Motaung was forced to sign a nondisclosure agreement and how he was paid less than was promised.

Meta’s Nairobi office tells The Washington Post that it requires its “partners to provide appropriate salaries, benefits and support.” “We also encourage moderators to raise concerns and we regularly conduct independent audits to ensure our partners meet the high standards we expect of them.”