Sama, Facebook’s former content moderation firm, is facing accusations of shielding an employee who allegedly raped two colleagues and sacking one of the victims to protect the company’s reputation. Two former employees from Sama’s Kenyan office have come forward, alleging that managers fostered an unsafe work environment by ignoring or downplaying their rape allegations against a colleague.
One of the women, using the pseudonym Hope Mandi, claimed she was raped by a colleague in Nairobi after moving from South Africa to work at Sama in May 2021. After reporting the assault to Sama, Mandi was taken to a hospital selected by the company’s in-house counselor, who handled the paperwork. However, Mandi claims that Sama discouraged her from involving the police, and no further action was taken against her alleged rapist.
Another former Sama employee, Zani Mazwai, reported that she was assaulted by the same man over a year later, despite Mandi’s previous allegations. She accused Sama of wanting to handle the situation internally and coercing her to be in the same room as her alleged attacker during a disciplinary hearing. Mazwai chose to file a police report instead. Following this, Mandi revealed to Mazwai that she had also been raped by the same colleague, leading both women to provide formal statements to the police.
In March, Mandi was fired from Sama and received a severance payment of 50,000 Kenyan shillings (approximately US$350). She believes Sama terminated her employment to protect its image, given the allegations against the colleague they had retained.
Sama’s global service delivery vice-president, Annepeace Alwala, stated that the organization provides a safe and respectful work environment and takes all allegations of misconduct seriously. She claimed that Mandi had withdrawn her initial sexual assault complaint, which Mandi vehemently denied.
The police have issued an arrest warrant for the alleged attacker, who fled to Uganda but has since returned to Nairobi. However, authorities have been unable to apprehend him without the victim’s presence for identification.
Both women express frustration with the police’s response and the handling of the assaults by Sama, impacting their mental health and professional prospects.
The allegations against Sama come amid ongoing legal challenges against the company and Meta (Facebook’s parent company) in Nairobi for unlawful redundancy and blacklisting after laying off all 260 of its content moderators in Kenya in March. Sama had ended its contract with Facebook, leading to the mass layoffs.
These accusations underscore the challenges faced by content moderators and the need for companies to prioritize their safety and well-being in this demanding role.
