In a leaked email obtained by Reuters, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said he needs to cut about 10 percent of the company’s workforce because he has a “super bad feeling” about the economy.
On the heels of a directive ordering remote staff back to on-site work, Musk told executives he plans steep cuts, according to the internal memo exclusively reviewed by Reuters:
Tesla (TSLA.O) CEO Elon Musk has a “super bad feeling” about the economy and needs to cut about 10% of jobs at the electric carmaker, he said in an email to executives seen by Reuters.The message, sent on Thursday and titled “pause all hiring worldwide”, came two days after the billionaire told staff to return to the workplace or leave, and adds to a growing chorus of warnings from business leaders about the risks of recession.Musk has warned in recent weeks about the risks of recession, but his email ordering a hiring freeze and staff cuts was the most direct and high-profile message of its kind from the head of
an automaker.
Tesla’s stock price has rallied from a late-May low of 663, but has still lost almost 500 points since November, a drop that was accelerated after Musk embroiled himself in a bid to take over Twitter.
Axios notes the significance and the potential impact of the news:
The big picture: Musk told Tesla staff this week that employees “should pretend to work somewhere else” if they’re not willing to return to their offices.”Anyone who wishes to do remote work must be in the office for a minimum (and I mean *minimum*) of 40 hours per week or depart Tesla,” he said.By the numbers: Tesla shares fell nearly 3% in U.S. pre-market trade on Friday, Reuters reports.Tesla and its subsidiaries employed nearly 100,000 people at the end of 2021, per Reuters.Representatives for Tesla could not immediately be reached for comment.
Musk has signaled he may try to get out of his agreement to purchase Twitter.