Former Oracle employees connected to the company’s Redwood Shores campus are suing the multinational tech company, alleging they were cheated out of stock options when it terminated them with little notice.
The lawsuit’s three plaintiffs lost their jobs this spring, the same day that Oracle laid off more than 300 people at its Redwood Shores location and hundreds more in other states as part of an AI-driven reorganization. Other laid-off employees received more than two month’s notice, enough time for their stock to vest, according to the complaint filed in Alameda County Superior Court.
Oracle did not respond to the Pulse’s request for comment in time for publication.
The complaint alleges that Oracle timed the remote-work employees’ termination to fall just outside the vesting date of their restricted stock awards, or RSUs. The lawsuit describes RSUs as “a key component of Oracle’s compensation scheme and a counterpoint to its below-market base salaries.”
In exchange, Oracle offered the employees severance packages that were worth thousands of dollars less than the value of the stock, the complaint alleges.
Three ex-employees filed the lawsuit on Oct. 7, claiming they received only 10 days’ notice of their termination and lost almost $1 million cumulatively in company stocks. They also alleged that, despite refusing to sign the severance agreement and taking a $26,443 payout, they suddenly lost their healthcare premiums and unvested 401(k) contributions, to which they each had contributed 6% of their salary every month. The damages claimed also include disability and discrimination.
“Oracle’s second mass layoff appears to reflect a calculated risk: Treat workers differently depending upon whether they work in-person or remote,” the complaint states, “limit individual damages to an amount few plaintiffs’ attorneys would bother with; hedge against class-wide exposure through a pre-dispute arbitration scheme; and pocket the savings at scale.”
On March 31, Oracle provided notice to California’s Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act coordinator that the company would lay off more than 300 employees at its Redwood Shores campus; Missouri WARN for more than 500 employees at its Kansas City campus; and Washington WARN for at least 450 employees at Oracle Seattle, or who work remotely in the state.
While WARN requires at least 60 days of notice for mass lay offs, Oracle extended the separation date by a few days, to June 5, allowing for company stock to vest, or become fully owned, by employees being laid off.
However, the three employees suing Oracle, who worked remotely and resided in and around the Bay Area, claimed they found out on March 31 that their last day with the company would be April 10. They lost their unvested stocks and 401(k) contributions, as well as their healthcare premiums, the complaint said.
The complaint identifies two of the employees as having disabilities.
One of the plaintiffs, Eunyoung Chang, alleged in the complaint that she was assigned to Oracle’s Redwood Shores campus, but was working from home because she has vertigo, a medical condition that can cause violent motion sickness and make it difficult to drive. Chang lived in Daly City for much of her employment with Oracle, according to the complaint, and lived in Sacramento County when she was let go.
In July, Oracle sent a letter to Chang encouraging her to apply for her old position, the complaint said.
Santa Clara County resident Ting Zhu said she reported to Oracle’s Seattle site and worked remotely because she experienced stomach pressure, fatigue and pain while sitting, which led her to get surgery in February, according to the complaint.
The third plaintiff, Efoe Adjakly, said in the complaint that he worked with Oracle’s Redwood Shores, Kansas City and Seattle staff while living in Alameda County.
The complaint acknowledged that while WARN “does not answer explicitly” to the issue of remote work in California, its governing regulations do. Prosecutors pointed to the 1996 finding from Tidewater Marine Western, Inc. v. Bradshaw that an employee who resides in California, receives pay in California, and works exclusively, or principally in California “is a wage earner of California” and enjoys protections under the California Labor Code.
Last fall, prior to the layoffs this spring, Oracle cut over 300 employees across the Bay Area. It eliminated 161 employees from its Seattle office, and some from its Kansas City health unit. On Sept. 14, Oracle notified WARN it would be slashing an additional 279 employees come mid-November.
Oracle’s office in Redwood City served as the multinational company’s headquarters from 1989 until it moved to Austin, Texas in December 2020. The relocation was meant to accommodate greater work location flexibility, said Deborah Hellinger, an Oracle spokesperson.
Much of Oracle’s 1.5-million-square-foot campus in Redwood City was vacant last fall, according to Amanda Anthony, the city’s economic development director. When Oracle moved its headquarters, she said she knew there would be a lot of changes to Redwood City and to “expect more layoffs.”
A case management conference is scheduled for March 27, 2027, according to Alameda County Superior Court.
