### Former Employee Sues Paramount Global Over Layoff Notification

A Paramount Global ex-employee has filed a lawsuit alleging the company failed to provide the mandated advance notice prior to recent layoffs. This follows layoffs announced on September 24, which left many former employees, including Julian Hagins, without the legally required 90 days' notice under New York's Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act.

The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and seeks class-action status on behalf of all similarly situated employees. Hagins, who worked for Paramount from his home in Orange, California, claims in the lawsuit that he and over 300 other employees based at Paramount's Manhattan headquarters were informed on September 24 that their terminations would be effective six days later, on September 30. This notice period falls significantly short of the 90-day notice required by state law.

Paramount Global, alongside CBS Interactive also named in the suit, disputes the allegations. A company spokesperson stated, "These claims are not grounded in any fact. Paramount employees entitled to Federal or State WARN notice receive it."

Hagins and other claimants are seeking compensation for 60 days' worth of wages and benefits, as required when an employer fails to provide adequate notice under the WARN Act. According to the state guidelines, private businesses with 50 or more full-time employees are required to give at least 90 days' notice if a mass layoff impacts 25 or more workers comprising at least 33% of the workforce at one site, or at least 250 full-time employees.

This lawsuit comes in the wake of Paramount's significant restructuring efforts to reduce its U.S. workforce by 15%, affecting around 2,000 employees. The recent layoffs were part of a broader strategy to cut $500 million in annualized costs, a figure that is now part of an even more ambitious goal to achieve $2 billion in cost synergies, set to be spearheaded by Jeff Shell who will become president of the combined company after the Skydance Media deal is finalized.

The ongoing situation remains contentious, as both parties prepare for a legal showdown over the interpretation and application of the WARN Act and the conditions under which these layoffs occurred.