Investing.com — Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:) employees are concerned that the electric car maker plans to lay off a large portion of its workforce as it grapples with declining sales, Business Insider reports. This was revealed in a separate report from Electrek.
Both reports indicated that rumors are circulating in Tesla's offices, particularly around its Gigafactory in Texas, that the EV maker could announce layoffs as early as this week. Workers were also concerned about layoffs at the Fremont plant.
Electrek reports that layoffs could be up to 20%, while Business Insider reports that Tesla is already shortening production shifts for the Cybertruck.
The report said the world's most valuable automaker recorded a sharp drop in deliveries in the first quarter amid weaker demand and increased competition in China, one of its biggest markets. It was announced inside.
Global EV demand is seen to have eased as customers refrained from making large purchases in the face of worsening economic conditions. The resurgence in popularity of hybrid models over the past year also appears to be eroding demand for EVs.
Earlier this year, Tesla was seen instructing managers to identify the most important roles within the company. The EV maker has also reportedly delayed some performance reviews.
Tesla has been lowering the prices of its vehicles over the past year to stimulate demand, particularly in China. However, the sales growth resulting from this was limited.
The company reportedly revised down its production target for 2024 in response to weak demand, and also canceled plans for a low-priced EV.
But Tesla is also touting plans to push further into self-driving and artificial intelligence technologies to offset the drop. CEO Elon Musk recently said that the EV maker's first robotaxi will be unveiled in August of this year.
Musk also claimed that high interest rates and a weak global economy are the main causes of weak sales.
