Tesla’s difficulties appear to have pushed it to remove all its job offers in North America. More than 3,400 positions were still open on May 1 on the Tesla site in the United States, Mexico and Canada. But all the offers were quietly removed and the company left only three available. Days earlier, the company canceled its summer student internship program after several weeks of mass layoffs that eliminated more than 10% of its global workforce. These developments follow a significant drop in car sales and declining profit margins.
Tesla appears to have declared a hiring freeze in North America. Data from an analysis published by Quartz reveals that the company removed more than 3,400 job offers in the United States, Mexico and Canada. All positions, from prototype vehicle operators to bodybuilders, have since been eliminated, and only three spots remain in Tesla’s manufacturing development program. This is a seven-week training program that promises the opportunity to become a full-time production associate at a Tesla factory. But according to analysts, nothing is less certain.
On LinkedIn, the company publishes 326 job offers. Most are located in China, some in Europe and one in the Dominican Republic. Only one position, for the manufacturing development program, appears to be located in the United States. This is the second time Tesla has removed its job postings almost entirely since it began mass layoffs on April 16. Nearly all job postings for the company’s North American operations were removed by that day. However, a few days later, the job board was restored with thousands of offers.
With the rapid growth [de Tesla], there has been a duplication of roles and functions in certain areas. As we prepare the company for its next phase of growth, it is extremely important to examine all aspects of the business to reduce costs and increase productivity, Musk wrote in an email to employees last month. while he informed them of the job cuts. “There is nothing I hate more, but it has to be done,” he wrote in his message, expressing his good wishes and thanks to the 14,000 employees who have since been laid off.
In recent weeks, Musk has been less apologetic about downsizing. In an email to senior Tesla executives, Musk said he wanted to be “absolutely uncompromising” on downsizing. The CEO added that he would ask any manager who retained more than three workers who “clearly do not pass the test of excellence, necessity and reliability” to resign. At least three executives left the company during the week. Tesla has entered its fourth week of layoffs, which also affect engineers.
Tesla has reportedly laid off many more workers in recent days. Their number is not known, but according to some reports, the cuts were made in the software, services and engineering departments. Before that, Tesla fired Rebecca Tinucci, Tesla’s senior director of electric vehicle charging, and the majority of the 500-person team she led. The team was working on the superchargers. According to a Bloomberg report, Tesla could eventually lay off nearly 30,000 people, one of the largest workforce reductions in the last two years.
Allie Arebalo, Tesla’s head of human resources (and one of the highest-ranking women at the company), has now resigned, joining a handful of other senior executives who have voiced their discontent and resigned from the company. business. Ms. Drew Baglino, Tesla’s former senior vice president of powertrain engineering and a leading candidate to one day replace Musk as Tesla CEO, has resigned. Baglino recently liquidated almost his entire stake in Tesla – worth an estimated $181 million – within days of his departure.
Separately, the company eliminated its summer internship program to cut costs, and young aspiring employees learned their offers had been retracted just weeks before they were due to start work. Tesla is going through one of the most difficult financial situations in years, with sales and profits falling 55% year over year. The company faces increased competition, both in the United States and China, and must cope with a decline in demand for electric vehicles around the world. But make no mistake, Musk has big goals.
The billionaire began to downplay Tesla’s activity in the electric vehicle market. He is trying to position Tesla as a “leader” in autonomous vehicles and has promised to unveil a fully autonomous robotaxi later this year. He presents Tesla as an “intelligent robotics company” that works on AI, autonomous driving (with its controversial Autopilot and Full Self-Driving software) and autonomous humanoid robots (with its Optimus humanode robot). Musk delivering a robotaxi in such a short time frame is the subject of great skepticism.)
Musk seems to believe in what he says and explains to shareholders that this is how they should see Tesla’s future. During the latest shareholder call on Q1 2024 results, Musk said: The Tesla way of thinking is almost entirely about solving for autonomy and being able to enable that autonomy for its gigantic fleet. We should be considered an intelligent robotics company. If you value Tesla as just a car company, that’s the wrong framework. And if you ask the wrong question, the right answer is impossible.
It is worth noting that Musk is laying off thousands of people while demanding compensation of $56 billion. Musk’s compensation plan was initially challenged by investors, then overturned by a Delaware judge. However, the Tesla boss and his backers within the company recently reintroduced this plan. It is considered extravagant and rekindles the debate on the gap between the remuneration of executives and employees.
And you ?
What is your opinion on the subject?
What do you think of Tesla’s decision to remove all these job offers in North America?
Is this a temporary measure? Or does this decision suggest that the situation at Tesla is worse than it seems?
What do you think of Musk’s statements that there was duplication of certain roles during Tesla’s growth phase?
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