Get back to work, or get fired is basically the message from Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. Source: Flickr
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has told his employees that they can no longer work from home, warning that if they don’t comply, they will leave the company.
Two separate sources confirmed the authenticity of the claims, with Mr Musk reportedly sending an email to his entire workforce with an ultimatum.
“Everyone at Tesla [and SpaceX] is required to spend a minimum of 40 hours in the office per week,” Mr Musk wrote.
“If you don’t show up, we will assume you have resigned.
“The more senior you are, the more visible must be your presence.”
Technology firms in California’s famed Silicon Valley have still not mandated staff to return to working in the office on a full-time basis, following a surge in COVID cases in the state and large numbers of staff reiterating their desire to complete their duties from home.
Tesla recently moved its headquarters to Austin, Texas, but the engineering base is still in California.
“There are of course companies that don’t require this, but when was the last time they shipped a great new product? It’s been a while,” the 50-year-old continued in the email.
“Tesla has and will create and actually manufacture the most exciting and meaningful products of any company on Earth.
“This will not happen by phoning it in.”
Elon to Tesla team: no more remote work pic.twitter.com/aSmZAAOm7G
— Whole Mars Catalog (@WholeMarsBlog) June 1, 2022
Twitter employees will likely report to the South African billionaire once his acquisition of the company is complete, and some have expressed Mr Musk’s notorious management style is of concern.
Blind, an anonymous app where company employees can post their thoughts on their workplace or employer using their provided corporation email address, was immediately filled with negative comments from Tesla workers.
“Waiting for him to backpedal real quick,” one posted.
“If there’s a mass exodus, how would Tesla finish products? I don’t think investors would be happy about that,” wrote another.
Mr Musk made some typically bold and slightly controversial statements last month after saying American people “are trying to avoid going to work at all” in comparison to Chinese workers, who “won’t even leave the factory” and would be “burning the 3am oil”.
“Employers including the state government are finding that mandating a return of all employees is a recipe for outbreaks,” Worksafe executive director Stephen Knight detailed in a written statement to Reuters.
“Unfortunately Tesla’s disregard for worker safety is well documented, including their flouting of the county public health department at the start of the pandemic.”
