* Tesla is eliminating 2,688 jobs in Austin, Texas, where the electric vehicle company is headquartered.
* The company is also cutting 3,332 jobs across California.
* The steep job cuts are part of a broader restructuring Tesla announced last week.
Tesla is reducing 3,332 positions throughout the state of California, and 2,688 positions in Austin, Texas, in accordance with Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act letters and notices filed in both states.
These job cuts are part of a wider restructuring effort announced by the electric vehicle manufacturer last week.
In 2021, Tesla CEO Elon Musk relocated the company’s corporate headquarters from Palo Alto, California, to Austin.
Musk indicated in an internal memo last week that Tesla would be eliminating over 10% of its global workforce as the EV manufacturer confronts declining sales and heightened competition. However, he did not specify which departments or locations would bear the brunt of the cuts.
"In our preparations for the company's forthcoming growth phase, it is imperative to scrutinize every facet of the organization for cost-saving opportunities and productivity enhancements," he stated. A subsequent WARN notice filed in New York disclosed the elimination of 285 positions at a Buffalo factory.
According to filings, Tesla had a total workforce of 140,473 employees as of December 2023.
Tesla ceremoniously inaugurated its Texas EV and battery plant in April 2022, accompanied by a "cyber rodeo" celebration. The company now manufactures some of its Model Y crossover utility vehicles in Austin and has initiated Cybertruck production there.
Musk later described the Austin factory, along with another assembly plant in Germany, as "massive profit generators" in an interview with Tesla Owners Silicon Valley, a fan club advocating for Tesla vehicles.
Per filings with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, Tesla intended to allocate upwards of $770 million in the previous year for expanding facilities in Austin, encompassing battery cell testing and manufacturing, cathode and drive unit manufacturing, as well as a die shop, among other endeavors.
Tuesday's WARN filings stated, "none of the employees are represented by a union and none of the employees have bumping rights," referring to the rights of more senior employees to displace those with less tenure.
The layoffs in California encompassed 2,266 individuals in Fremont, where Tesla's initial U.S. vehicle assembly plant is located, and 486 employees in Palo Alto, the site of Tesla's engineering headquarters. The reductions affected employees across the company's factories, engineering offices, stores, showrooms, and service centers throughout the state.
Positions were also eliminated in Burbank and Lathrop, where Tesla produces spare parts at a foundry and assembles Megapack battery energy storage systems.
Executives are anticipated to address the restructuring during the company's quarterly earnings call at 5:30 p.m. ET.
