TikTok sued in UK by content moderator, alleging toxic workplace

ByteDance Ltd.’s TikTok has been sued by a UK content moderator, alleging disability discrimination and a toxic work environment that caused her stress and pregnancy complications.

Olivia Anton Altamirano worked on TikTok’s Badness project aimed at removing harmful content from the platform. She was given “impossible to meet” targets and discriminated against because she suffered from multiple sclerosis, Altamirano claimed in court filings. TikTok has denied all the allegations.

TikTok failed to eliminate all claims in the case, and a judge allowed the case to proceed to the next stage. “That’s not to say that this claim has a good prospect of success, but I can’t say that it doesn’t have a reasonable prospect of success,” Judge Mark Emery said after a hearing on Wednesday.

Altamirano continues to work at TikTok and has not been given unrealistic targets, according to the company’s lawyers. Her team manager provided her with the appropriate support she needed because of her medical conditions, documents prepared for the hearing said. Attorneys and spokespeople for TikTok and Altamirano did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

“I felt insulted, harassed and degraded in a toxic work environment,” Altamirano claimed. The stress would lead to anxiety, depression and complications in her pregnancy.

The UK employees’ lawsuits add to the legal woes in the US, where they face a protracted legal battle over a possible ban. A key hearing in the case is set for September 16.

The company is also contesting a lawsuit filed earlier this month by the US Department of Justice that claims ByteDance allowed millions of children under 13 to create accounts without their parents’ knowledge or consent. TikTok disagrees with the claims and has said many of them are inaccurate or have been addressed.

What a US TikTok ban would mean for the app: QuickTake

Altamirano, who joined TikTok in 2020, asked London’s employment tribunal to order TikTok to compensate her for hurt feelings and health insurance.

Top photo: TikTok Inc’s UK headquarters. from London. Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg.

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