Elon Musk’s argument for ending remote work at Tesla

Against several tech giants, electric car maker Tesla, owned by billionaire Elon Musk, has ordered employees to return to office-based work.

The determination came from Musk himself, who says that remote work would no longer be acceptable, after the worst moment of the Covid-19 pandemic. The new policy was shared through emails that were leaked on social media.

Tesla did not respond to a request for comment on the emails, one of which appeared to be directed at company executives.

Anyone who doesn’t want to follow the new rules can “pretend they’re working somewhere else,” Musk quipped on Twitter when asked about the company’s new labor policy.

“Everyone at Tesla is expected to spend a minimum of 40 hours a week in the office,” read one of the leaked emails. “If you don’t show up, let’s assume you quit.”

The emails said that employees should return to work from one of the company’s main offices, “not to a remote branch that is unrelated to work tasks.”

Musk assured that he would review any requests for exceptions to the policy he announced himself. He added that full-time face-to-face work should be the new norm and that face-to-face collaboration was critical to the company’s success.

“Of course there are companies that don’t require this, but when was the last time they released a great new product? It’s been a while,” he said in one of two emails leaked to social media.

“Tesla has created and will create and produce the most interesting and meaningful products of any company on Earth. It will not happen over the phone.”

Lot of options

Companies in different industries are deciding whether to maintain the remote work practices that have become popular during the coronavirus pandemic.

Some industries, such as banking, signaled early on that they expected employees to return to their offices, while in others, such as the technology industry, many companies said they would work remotely indefinitely. Many others have opted for a hybrid system.

Office occupancy in the US is approximately 43%, according to data from Kastle, a company that provides security solutions for thousands of buildings across the country.

‘Living in the factory’

Musk is famous for his own attitude towards work. He rarely takes a vacation, and during a difficult time for Tesla, he slept on the factory floor.

“The higher your headline, the more visible your presence should be,” he wrote in one of the emails, referring to the remote work policy.

“That’s why I lived in the factory for so long, so those on the (production) lines could see me working alongside them. If I hadn’t, Tesla would have been bankrupt a long time ago.”

It’s not the first time that Musk has criticized remote work. Earlier this year, he wrote on Twitter: “The whole stay-at-home thing because of Covid has led people to think that you really don’t have to work hard. A hard awakening is coming!”