- Tesla is tracking office attendance by monitoring how often workers use their badge to sign in.
- The carmaker sent emails to employees who have not 'badged in' enough, reiterating its new policy, Insider confirmed.
- Elon Musk reportedly told Tesla staff to return to work for 40 hours a week or quit on May 31.
Tesla is monitoring employees' office attendance, according to a Tesla employee and posts on the professional network app Blind.
On Tuesday, a Tesla employee posted a screenshot to Blind of an automated email from Tesla. The email notified the individual they had not used their badge to enter a Tesla facility on at least 16 days over the last month. A Tesla employee confirmed to Insider the authenticity of the email.
A Tesla spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment from Insider.
"This is an automated notification," the email read. "You are receiving this email because there is no record of you using your badge to enter a Tesla facility on at least 16 days over the 30-day period ending on June 28. As a reminder, all employees are expected to be back in the office, fulltime. We realize that there are various reasons why you may not have badged in, including illness, vacation or traveling for business. Whatever the case, please clear the reason for you absence with your manager by email, with a copy also sent to [email protected]."
Another Blind poster from Tesla said the new policy could be a deterrent for workers.
"This feels wrong," the individual wrote. "I can't quite put it into words why it bothers me, it feels like it's an overstep. It's controlling. It's disrespectful."
Blind is an anonymous forum for verified employees to discuss company issues. The platform verifies users' identities via their company emails. Neither Blind user responded to a request for comment in time for publication.
On May 31, Tesla CEO Elon Musk reportedly issued an ultimatum to Tesla staff, calling for them to return to the office for a minimum of 40 hours a week or quit. The billionaire has said the move is part of an effort to promote equality between factory workers — who were required to work in person throughout the pandemic — and executives.
On Monday, The Information reported that Tesla employees were having difficulty finding desk space and parking spots at Tesla's Fremont factory amid Musk's bid for Tesla's nearly 100,000 person workforce to fully return to the office. The publication reported that some managers were telling workers to come in fewer than five days a week due to the lack of space — a direct conflict to Musk's mandate.
Tesla is not the first to start tracking employee sign-ins. In April, Insider was the first to report that JPMorgan had begun tracking office attendance using "dashboards" and "reports." The company used the data to enforce return-to-office quotas, including through call and emails from managers to staffers who were not meeting JPMorgan's return-to-office expectations, Insider previously reported.
At the time, multiple employees told Insider the new policy had lead them to search for jobs elsewhere.
Tesla staffers could have a similar response. Earlier this month, recruiters at major companies like Amazon and Microsoft began targeting Tesla employees who could be averse Musk's return-to-office edict on LinkedIn.
Tesla's new policy comes after Musk said he is planning to eliminate about 10% of salaried workers due to concerns regarding the future of the US economy. Insider previously reported that the lay-offs have already begun.
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