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Tesla Rumored Layoffs and Hiring Freeze Paint a Bleak Picture for the EV Maker

Rumor has it that Tesla operations are not going very well, and this was even before the share prices tanked in the past days. A new report claiming Tesla will freeze hiring and initiate a new round of layoffs seems to support the theory.
Tesla rumored layoffs and hiring freeze paint a bleak picture for the EV maker 6 photos
Photo: Tesla
Elon Musk warns Rivian and Lucid are “tracking toward bankruptcy”Tesla Giga AustinTesla Giga GruenheideTesla Giga GruenheideTesla Giga Gruenheide
Since Elon Musk announced his intention to buy Twitter, things got rocky for Tesla. Investors’ confidence has plummeted, especially as Musk seems utterly distracted by his new toy, which coincidentally ate through his stash of Tesla stock. Musk had to sell a staggering amount of Tesla shares to finance his fantasy, which put even more pressure on Tesla stock. The fact that he kept selling despite promising he’d not do it anymore didn’t help.

Previous reports showed a mixed image of how things were going at Tesla. On the one hand, operations were bustling, with production at an all-time high and profits pouring in. On the other hand, we’ve written about decreasing demand and increasing inventories, which in some cases has prompted Tesla to consider price cuts and incentives. New reports from “a source familiar with the matter” cited by Electrek seem to confirm the latter is taking precedence, with planned layoffs in the next quarter and a hiring freeze.

This is the second time Tesla would want to cut its workforce after Musk announced a similar move in June. Back then, Musk said that he had a “very bad feeling” about the economy and wanted to trim the salaried workforce by 10%. Nevertheless, Tesla soon reversed the decision and started hiring again in the second half of the year. The move was necessary to accommodate Tesla’s many projects, including the Cybertruck and the Semi. The EV maker also struggled to ramp up production at its gigafactories in Austin and Berlin.

There’s no indication that the upcoming layoffs would be any different. While information is scarce, and Tesla does not have a PR department to clarify, we expect it to need more workers to support its growth plans. According to German media, Tesla is having difficulty finding and retaining employees at its Berlin Gigafactory. This is mainly because the compensation packages are not competitive with the rest of the German manufacturing sector, and the work environment is worse.

Tesla is also trying to ramp up Giga Austin production at the same time and produce more Semi trucks, all while setting up production for the Cybertruck. Unless Musk plans to freeze some of these projects, there’s no way Tesla could pull it off without hiring more people. Of course, as an industry insider, Musk probably knows more about trends than any of us, explaining his new take on cutting the workforce. He often speaks about an imminent recession, partly fueled by the Fed’s rate hikes.

Meanwhile, people, including Elon Musk fans, begin to lose confidence in his managerial qualities. The chaos he brought to Twitter, the rushed decisions that he retracted just as hastily, and his fights with anyone not agreeing with him all paint a grim picture of a man losing his grip on the situation. Musk recently set up a poll to show that people still want him as Twitter CEO, and then he walked away because he didn’t like the outcome. Seeing his reaction, we can safely rule out a similar poll for the CEO role at Tesla, although it might be needed badly.
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About the author: Cristian Agatie
Cristian Agatie profile photo

After his childhood dream of becoming a "tractor operator" didn't pan out, Cristian turned to journalism, first in print and later moving to online media. His top interests are electric vehicles and new energy solutions.
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