TikTok sought to assure its U.S. employees on Tuesday that they will still have a job next week even if the Supreme Court upholds a law that would see the video app banned in the United States on Sunday.
The message marks a change in tone from TikTok, which has further said it is confident it will emerge victorious from the legal challenge to the law. It also shows that the company has no plans to leave the United States anytime soon, even if it is prohibited.
TikTok, owned by Chinese company ByteDance, is fighting a law last year that would ban the app unless its U.S. operations were sold to a non-Chinese owner. TikTok sent a message to its staff on Tuesday acknowledging the uncertainty surrounding the upcoming decision and assuring employees that they would continue to be paid. The Supreme Court is expected to rule before the law takes effect on Sunday.
“Your work, pay and benefits are safe, and our offices will remain open even if this situation is not resolved by the January 19 deadline,” Nicky Raghavan, TikTok's global head of human resources, wrote in the message, which was obtained by The New York Times. “The bill is not written in a way that impacts the entities you work with, but only the American user experience.”
The law would penalize app stores and internet hosting services for distributing or updating the TikTok app, effectively banning the platform. It would not force the closure of TikTok offices in the United States.
The message also stated: “Our leadership team remains focused on planning for various scenarios and continues to plan the path forward.”
The note, which praised employees for their “resilience and dedication,” is one of the company's few internal acknowledgments of its legal battles in recent months. Despite the existential threat TikTok faces, there is little recognition within the company that it could soon be banned in the United States, former employees told The Times in November. Executives have at times made light of the situation, suggesting at a meeting of all involved that it will one day be the subject of a Hollywood movie, some of them said.
TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for the latest headcount in the United States, but the message was sent to an internal “US Team News” channel with more than 13,000 employees. TikTok previously said it had more than 7,000 U.S. employees.
“As we await the U.S. Supreme Court's decision before January 19, we know you have many questions and we would like to provide a clear roadmap for next steps,” Ms. Raghavan wrote. She added: “We know it's upsetting not to know exactly what happens next.”
