Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) said it plans to cut its workforce by more than 10%, Electreck reported Monday after allegedly seeing a leaked company-wide email to staff.
The move follows several months of speculation and preparatory actions by the company, including instructions to managers to pinpoint essential personnel and the suspension of certain stock rewards and employee reviews.
Over the recent days, rumors intensified, suggesting potential layoffs of up to 20% and adjustments to Cybertruck production schedules at the Texas Gigafactory, despite CEO Elon Musk's statements about production constraints.
The internal communication by Tesla solidifies the scale of the layoffs, albeit at a lower percentage than initially rumored.
“Over the years, we have grown rapidly with multiple factories scaling around the globe. With this rapid growth there has been duplication of roles and job functions in certain areas,” the leaked email states, according to Electreck.
“As we prepare the company for our next phase of growth, it is extremely important to look at every aspect of the company for cost reductions and increasing productivity.”
“As part of this effort, we have done a thorough review of the organization and made the difficult decision to reduce our headcount by more than 10% globally. There is nothing I hate more, but it must be done. This will enable us to be lean, innovative and hungry for the next growth phase cycle,” it added.
Although the exact layoff percentage remains unknown, over 10% means that a minimum of 14,000 employees will depart the EV giant, said Electreck, citing the company’s total headcount of roughly 140,000.
TSLA shares fell slightly in premarket trading on Monday.