By Tez Romero
Publication Date: 2026-03-09 20:43:00
According to the lawsuit, IBM rated Gutierrez as “thriving” in a performance evaluation on February 10, 2025. On March 17, the company processed his annual profit-sharing payment — a bonus IBM’s own documentation tied to the employee’s contribution to business results. The following day, March 18, Gutierrez received a termination notice citing a “Reduction in Force” and “Talent Footprint.”
The timing alone would raise questions. But the lawsuit goes further.
It alleges IBM had already begun onboarding a replacement worker roughly 28 days before telling Gutierrez he was being let go. Internal Slack messages and Monday.com records cited in the filing allegedly show a colleague spending 1.5 hours training the replacement on change management duties and requesting system access for him — all while Gutierrez was still on the job and unaware.
The suit also alleges IBM did not eliminate Gutierrez’s role so much as divide it. At least three…
