Liam Saranich | News Editor
On Monday, April 15th, it was reported by Reuters that Austin-based Tesla sites are slashing 10% of its global workforce. It is not yet clear how many jobs will be cut in Texas, and despite the news outlet reviewing an internal memo from the company, it has not been confirmed how many employees will be affected.
With about 22,777 employees located in Austin, Tesla is believed to be one of the largest private employers in the city. Only the state of Texas and the University of Texas surpass Tesla in terms of employment, with Tesla narrowly beating H-E-B, according to data from Opportunity Austin.
The effects of this workforce cut can already be seen in the company, with Tesla employees feeling blindsided after learning about these layoffs via email. According to their annual report released in January of this year, Tesla’s current total employee headcount stands at 140,473. With this 10% cut, roughly 14,000 people will now be facing unemployment.
On the same day, the news website Electrek also reported that two of Tesla’s executives were no longer with the company. Senior vice president of powertrain and electrical engineering, Drew Baglino, announced on X that he would be stepping down from his position amidst the reported cuts. Rohan Patel, vice president of public policy and business development, stated that he would be departing from the company due to the big “overall changes” happening within the company.
Tesla had a very rocky start in the beginning of 2024. The company’s stock has dropped down by 35% since January 1st, and in recent days it has approached a 52-week low, not seen since April 2023.
Earlier this month, Tesla released its latest vehicle delivery numbers ahead of its quarterly earnings report, which wasn’t expected to drop until later this month. The delivery numbers are the closest statistic to its sales figures that the company willingly discloses. Tesla delivered 20% fewer vehicles in the first quarter of 2024 than in the last quarter of 2023. Compared with the same quarter a year prior, Tesla saw an 8.5% drop in delivery sales.
As said by Dan Ives—an industry expert—this quarter was a “nightmare,” and marks a “fork in the road” for Tesla and its CEO Elon Musk.