Tesla sued by former employee for unethical mass layoffs, seeking 60-day notice period worth of damages
Former Tesla employees have filed a lawsuit against the American electric-car maker, alleging that its decision to “mass layoffs” violated federal law because the company failed to give advance notice of job cuts.
The lawsuit was filed late Sunday in Texas by two workers who said they were terminated. TeslaThe gigafactory in Sparks, Nevada in June. According to the lawsuit, more than 500 employees were terminated at the Nevada factory.
The workers allege the company failed to comply with the federal mass layoff law’s 60-day notice period requirement under the Workers’ Adjustment and Retraining Notice Act, according to the lawsuit.
They are seeking class action status for all former Tesla employees across the US who were laid off in May or June without notice.
“Tesla has only notified employees that termination of their contracts will be effective immediately,” the lawsuit said.
Tesla, which has not yet commented on the number of layoffs, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the lawsuit.
Musk, the world’s richest man, said earlier this month he has “extremely bad feelings” about the economy and Tesla needs to cut staff by about 10%, according to an email obtained by Reuters.
More than 20 people who identified themselves as Tesla employees said they had been laid off, laid off or terminated this month, according to online posts and interviews with Reuters.
The lawsuit is filed by John Lynch and Daxton Hartsfield, who were fired on June 10 and June 15, respectively, seeking wages and benefits during a 60-day notice period.
“It’s shocking that Tesla blatantly violated federal labor law by laying off so many workers without providing required notice,” Shannon Liss-Riordan, an attorney representing the workers, told Reuters.
“She said Tesla will only lay off some employees for a week, adding that she is preparing an emergency motion with the court to try to stop Tesla from trying to get employees back in exchange for just a week off work.
The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court, Western District of Texas.
© Thomson Reuters 2022
