A TikTok moderator has sued the social networking platform and its parent company, ByteDance, for emotional trauma caused by the way the video contains shocking content. Candie Frazier, TikTok’s content moderator, wants to propose making this lawsuit a class action.
She said she had to watch videos showing scenes of violence, school shootings, fatal falls and even cannibalism. “Plaintiff had trouble sleeping and had terrible nightmares,” according to the lawsuit.
To make matters worse, TikTok is accused of requiring moderators to work 12-hour shifts with just one hour for lunch and two 15-minute breaks. “Due to the sheer volume of content, moderators are only allowed to watch no more than 25 seconds per video and simultaneously view three to ten videos at a time,” according to the complaint.
Along with other social media companies including Facebook and YouTube, TikTok has developed guidelines to help moderators better deal with child abuse videos and other haunting images. Among them are moderators’ shift limit to four hours and psychological support. However, TikTok allegedly failed to implement those guidelines, according to the lawsuit.
Content moderators are tasked with watching and reviewing videos with shocking, violent images, making sure that users do not see them. This job can cause post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, social media companies have been criticized for paying wages that are not commensurate with the psychological risk moderators may face and for not providing enough mental health support. A similar lawsuit was filed against Facebook in 2018.
Frazier hopes to represent other Tiktok moderators in the class action lawsuit and is seeking compensation for psychological trauma and a request for a medical fund for moderators.
Reference: Engadget
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