Was Tesla Prepared For Remote Workers To Return To Office? This Report Says No

Employees who returned to work from home at a Tesla Inc TSLA factory in California lacked the tools and resources needed to complete their jobs. Here’s the latest on the company’s return to work efforts.

What Happened: In early June, Tesla CEO Elon Musk told remote workers of Tesla it was time to return to work in person.

In a tweet, Musk said employees who wanted to keep working from home should “pretend to work somewhere else.” Workers who failed to come back to the office when the policy takes place were told they would be recognized as having resigned from the company.

Those who returned to the company’s Fremont office were met with a surprising lack of readiness by the company this week.

A new report from The Information said Tesla didn’t have enough desks ready for workers as areas of the office were repurposed during the pandemic, leading to a lower amount of desks than before. And, people who had a desk to work at faced Wi-Fi that was minimal and too weak to use efficiently.

Employees also told The Information there was a lack of parking places, leading some to work at a nearby transit station and get shuttled to the office by Tesla.

Related Link: Happy Birthday Elon Musk: 51 Facts And Figures About Tesla And SpaceX CEO On His 51st Birthday 

Why It’s Important: Musk recently told Twitter Inc TWTR employees he prefers to have them return to in-person work, with some exceptions.

Musk told them if they are exceptional at their job, they should be allowed to work remotely.

But, “Tesla makes cars, and you can’t make cars remotely,” Musk said comparing Tesla's and Twitter's remote work policies.

TSLA Price Action: Tesla shares closed down 5% to $697.99 on Friday versus a 52-week range of $620.46 to $1,243.49.

Photo: Courtesy Tesla