Tesla has laid off at least 10% of its workforce earlier this month, and in typical Tesla fashion, the Texas-based automaker made sure the layoffs were done in an organized manner with plenty of communication and a well-defined strategy clear. Just kidding. The firing was so poorly executed that security forced it Scan employee badges at the door to find out who has been fired. And apparently that includes a guy who slept in his car and showered at the factory so he could work longer hours.
Nico Murillo, who until April 15 worked as a production supervisor at Tesla’s Freemont facility, recently posted his layoff experience on LinkedIn and shared a timeline of how he discovered he had been fired. How to lose your job:
4:30am: Opened laptop, account was deactivated. Thought it was just another IT problem so thought nothing of it.
5:00 a.m. I usually check my email on my way to work on autopilot (1 hour 30 minute drive) The email says: “Unfortunately, your position has been eliminated due to re-employment. this structure”.
5:05am Texted my manager but he said “you got it, we’ll get more information later”
5:50 a.m. Tried to log in, security guard took my card and told me I was fired
6:00 am sitting in the car in disbelief.
You would think that someone working at Tesla would know that even with Tesla’s so-called “Full Self-Driving” software, Autopilot is only a Level 2 system and still requires the driver to monitor the road instead of check email. After all, its use is involved more than 200 accidents and at least 29 deathsbut for the purposes of this post, we’ll move on because his story takes a quick and sad turn.
According to Murillo, during his five years at Tesla, he moved from an entry-level Production Associate role to a Lead Production Associate and finally to Production Supervisor. Additionally, with a commute of 90 minutes each way, in 2023 he apparently began sleeping in his car, showering at the factory, and cooking dinner in the microwave on the days he worked.
Unfortunately for Murillo, loyalty to a company will not be met by loyalty to you. Even if you post better numbers than your peers, in the end you’re just another bag of meat they’re forced to pay until they figure out how to replace you. This may explain why the United Auto Workers union made great achievements in Alabama, in all the statesAnd Volkswagen workers in Chattanooga recently voted to join the UAW although a similar vote failed in 2019.
Hopefully Tesla’s Freemont factory isn’t too far behind Volkswagen’s Chattanooga facility. They deserve better than being forced to line up outside the door waiting for security to find out who has a job.
H/T: Scoops
