Tesla Tells Workers Building Cybertruck to Stay Home as Demand Slumps

They're being paid not to come to work.

Paid Leave

Demand for Tesla's highly controversial Cybertruck appears to be waning.

According to an internal memo obtained by Business Insider, workers at the company's Austin factory were told to take the next three days off, while still receiving eight hours of pay.

It's a mysterious development, and it's still unclear why the workers were told to stay home.

But the news hints at the possibility that as Tesla ramps up production of the vehicle, overall demand is starting to seriously slow down — despite healthy sales numbers through the third quarter of this year, to be fair — as the brutalist pickup's reputation as a lemon grows and the market runs out of true believers.

Terrible Investment

According to BI, some Cybertruck line workers had already been battling an erratic work schedule since late October. Some of them reported being sent home or told to clean up.

"When I started at Tesla you could expect to get overtime pay, now I feel lucky to get 40 hours," one worker told BI.

While EV sales have soared overall, Tesla has sold fewer cars so far this year than last year, Electrek reports, in a notable decline.

The Cybertruck in particular has proven divisive, having been recalled a total of six times so far this year due to a number of glaring technical problems and baffling design decisions.

The vehicle has also become a lightning rod on the street in large part due to its close association with the carmaker's far-right CEO.

The value of used Cybertrucks is also dropping quickly, indicating the sheen is really starting to wear off.

In short, it's still unclear why Cybertruck line workers were sent home. But the timing is certainly suspect as the company's fourth quarter closes out.

More on the Cybertruck: Cybertrucks Appear to Have a Bafflingly Stupid Problem When It Snows