Tesla CEO Elon Musk has often been known for his tough working style and what he calls ultra hardcore work culture. Musk’s philosophy includes getting the most out of his employees which was also revealed when the billionaire took over Twitter in a $44 billion deal last year. Musk had fired most of the staff of social media giant and asked other employees to commit to being “hardcore” or leave the company.
In a memo sent to Tesla employees in 2012, Musk explained his “Ultra Hardcore” philosophy that is needed to revolutionize industries.
Musk wrote, “Please prepare yourself for a level of intensity that is greater than anything most of you have ever experienced before…Revolutionizing industries is not for the faint of heart, but nothing is more rewarding or exciting, and I will personally make sure that those who produce exceptional results are rewarded exceptionally, as is fair and right.”
However, this ‘ultra hardcore’ work culture has led to a significant impact on the lives of Tesla workers. A recent episode of The Verge’s podcast titled “Land of the Giants: The Tesla Shock Wave” uncovered how Tesla’s work culture led to many problems for the employees like extremely long hours, unsafe working conditions, harassment, scandals, fines, lawsuits, and even the slightest of mistake could lead to termination.
Ex-Tesla employees reveal harrowing details on working conditions:
The podcast notes many instances of problems faced by Tesla employees including working longer than 12-hour long shifts, workers fainting from dehydration, one man’s leg getting crushed down the assembly line while another being called the n-word in front of his team.
Huibert Mees, who worked in Tesla for almost 5 years and was personally lured by Musk from Ford, while speaking about work culture at Tesla told The Verge, “It became all-consuming…You put in the hours and it was weekends and it was 8, 9, 10 at night every night.”
Another former Tesla employee Melvin Berry who worked at Tesla between 2015 and 2016 told The Verge, “Let’s say you dropped something. Let’s say you do something wrong. You get fired on the spot. Because Elon was coming out of a room looking dead at you and find you.”
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Updated: 21 Aug 2023, 04:14 PM IST