Two former employees at Tesla have filed a lawsuit against the electric vehicle maker, claiming that the mass layoffs that have resulted in hundreds of employees being out of a job on short notice were unlawful.
On June 2, Tesla CEO Elon Musk sent out an internal email to his executives, stating that he had a “super bad feeling” about the state of the economy and that the company needed to terminate at least 10% of its workforce.
Two employees at Tesla’s Gigafactory in Sparks, Nevada, say they were terminated. John Lynch stated that he was notified of his immediate dismissal on June 10 while Daxton Hartsfield was informed on June 15 and terminated that same day.
Lynh and Hartsfield said that at least 500 of their coworkers lost their jobs around the same time in the Nevada plant, according to the company.
The two stated that the mass layoffs at Tesla violated the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, which requires employers to notify their workers at least 60 calendar days in advance before shutting down a plant or laying off 50 or more workers at the same site.
Related: Colbert reveals the real reason why his crew was arrested
“Tesla has simply notified the employees that their terminations would be effective immediately. Tesla has also failed to provide a statement of the basis for reducing the notification period to zero days in advance,” the court document states.
Lynch and Hartsfield are seeking out a class action status for those who were terminated in May and June without sufficient notice and they are looking to claim 60 days’ work of pay and benefits from the company.
Other employees on the internet shared that they were fired shortly after Musk’s internal email was sent out.
