Meta sued by former manager who claims he was fired over immigration letter

Meta Platforms is facing a lawsuit from a former product design manager who claims he was terminated after refusing to sign an immigration support letter for a Chinese engineer. James Tillinghast filed the suit on August 17 in a U.S. District Court in New Jersey. According to the complaint, Tillinghast alleges that the letter overstated the employee's contributions and that he raised concerns about how Meta provided immigration assistance to some workers. The lawsuit claims the company retaliated against him after he refused to support statements he believed were inaccurate. It further accuses Meta of providing immigration support more frequently to certain Chinese national employees than to similarly situated workers from other countries. The dispute began in 2024 when Meta and external immigration lawyers were preparing an I-140 petition for an employee within Tillinghast’s product design organization. The petition aimed to secure an EB-2 National Interest Waiver, allowing the foreign worker to pursue permanent residency in the United States without a specific job offer or labor certification. A proposed managerial reference letter allegedly credited the employee with generating approximately $638 million in additional advertising revenue. The letter also described the worker as developing artificial intelligence tools and assuming broader leadership responsibilities. Tillinghast claims that parts of the letter did not accurately reflect the employee’s actual duties. He asserts that engineering teams performed much of the technical work attributed to the employee. He states he discussed his concerns with Meta’s immigration legal team and collaborated with the employee to revise the letter. However, according to the complaint, Tillinghast ultimately refused to sign statements he felt he could not personally endorse. The lawsuit alleges that after raising his concerns, his manager, Bolan Wang, either provided or signed a replacement letter for the immigration petition. Tillinghast claims Meta then revoked his access to internal systems around August 29, 2024. His employment was officially terminated on September 30. Tillinghast alleges that Meta did not provide a performance improvement plan, written warning, or documented performance issue when his employment ended. He contends that the company later cited poor performance as the reason for his dismissal, but argues this explanation was a pretext for retaliation due to his objections. The lawsuit names both Meta Platforms and Wang as defendants. In addition to the allegations regarding his termination, Tillinghast makes a separate claim about Meta’s immigration assistance practices. According to the complaint, Meta provided company-coordinated immigration support more frequently to certain Chinese national employees than to similarly situated employees from other countries. This support included access to immigration lawyers, assistance in preparing and reviewing petition documents, and aid in obtaining managerial reference letters. Tillinghast claims Meta did not apply neutral and consistent criteria when offering these benefits. The lawsuit argues that immigration support was an employment-related benefit and that his objections to what he believed was unequal treatment were protected under New Jersey law. The case highlights ongoing tensions around immigration policies and workplace fairness, particularly concerning how companies handle visa petitions and support for foreign employees. While Meta has not yet responded publicly to the lawsuit, the allegations suggest a potential breach of internal procedures and possible discrimination based on nationality. Legal proceedings will determine whether Tillinghast’s claims hold merit and whether Meta violated any employment laws. The outcome could have implications for how tech firms manage immigration-related matters and their obligations toward equitable treatment of all employees.