--- title: "Fired Tesla Workers Say Elon Musk Is in Big Trouble Without Them" description: "While Tesla has already garnered a reputation for less-than-stellar customer service, the situation is getting worse given the layoffs." date: "2024-04-22" modified: "2024-04-22" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/fired-tesla-workers-elon-musk-trouble" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Elon Musk" - "Future Society" - "Tesla" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "cybertruck" - "elon musk" - "robotaxis" - "tesla" --- # Fired Tesla Workers Say Elon Musk Is in Big Trouble Without Them ![While Tesla has already garnered a reputation for less-than-stellar customer service, the situation is getting worse given the layoffs.]() *\Image: Sergei GAPON / AFP\* Thousands of Tesla employees were blindsided by the company's mass layoffs last week. Workers were left in the dark, only to find out they were fired once their [keycards no longer]() allowed them to get into the company's buildings. And while Tesla has already [garnered a reputation]() for [less-than-stellar customer service](), the situation is only bound to get worse, [*The Independent* reports](), given the sheer scale of the layoffs, [which affected about ten percent]() of its global workforce. "The quality, at least in customer care, is going to get worse," one person who was laid off told the newspaper. "It’s already pretty bad, with hour-long hold times and a skeleton crew of overworked agents... we needed more people, not fewer." Some customers have already seen the effects of this change, with the company's service centers [canceling seasonal tire swap appointments](). "They can't honor them because they laid them off," one redditor [hypothesized](). Tesla's unusual method of producing many cars only after receiving an order for them has resulted in workers simply standing out, *The Independent* reports*,* waiting for orders to come in. But new orders are dropping significantly. The electric car manufacturer disappointed with its [first-quarter earnings]() this year, alarming investors with worse-than-expected results headlined by a 20 percent quarter-over-quarter drop in deliveries. The company's shares are down about 44 percent so far this year — and investors are expecting those losses to grow, [given a "nightmare" year ahead](). "There would be a lot of days where we would just stand there for three to four hours because we’d met our quota," Deitrich Dickson, a laid off employee who worked on the Model 3 production line, told *The Independent*. "I think they over-hired because they were expecting to sell more cars." Numerous factors are contributing to Tesla's hellish year, from falling overall demand for electric cars to an influx of cheaper Chinese alternatives. The company also has [reportedly shifted its focus]() from a cheaper Model 2 vehicle to a "robotaxi," despite plenty of [controversy]() surrounding Tesla's [much-maligned]() [driver assist software](). Just last week, the company [had to recall every single Cyberrtuck]() that had been sold in the US over a design flaw that can cause the massive pickup's accelerator pedal to get stuck down — a massive lapse in safety that could've easily led to somebody getting hurt. Meanwhile, Tesla is in panic mode, [slashing prices yet again]() for both its cars and the company's Full Self-Driving feature to stave off waning enthusiasm for the brand. Other experts have pointed the finger squarely at the company's mercurial CEO Elon Musk, whose [abhorrent behavior]() [has alienated a huge swathe]() of Tesla's potential customer base. While [stiffing laid-off employees]() by paying out "incorrectly low" severance packages, Musk has been pushing hard to reinstate a thrown-out $56 billion pay package for himself, going as far as to [launch an entire website]() designed to convince other shareholders of the plan. And that's not to mention his [incredibly problematic antics]() that have tarnished the company's reputation. "He's trashed the Tesla brand," investment management CEO and noted Tesla bull Ross Gerber told *The Independent*. "Is there any group of people that he hasn’t insulted other than white people...? Only him and Kanye West have reached this level of people’s distaste for him." **More on Tesla:** *[Tesla Recalling All Cybertrucks After Disastrous Issue With Accelerator Getting Stuck Down]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()