BUFFALO, N.Y. — Some workers at the Tesla plant in South Buffalo got some very difficult news as they arrived for their early morning shift on Monday. Corporate cost-cutting may cost them their jobs at the sprawling facility at Riverbend.
The front parking lots of New York Gigafactory at Buffalo's Riverbend seemed full of worker's cars - notably most are not Tesla EV models - but that may not indicate what was apparently happening to some employees as the impact of a memo from CEO Elon Musk may be filtering down through the ranks. The Electrek website obtained that memo which speaks of cost-trimming moves including more than ten percent global job cuts from the Tesla international workforce of an estimated just over 140,000 full-time positions at 8 listed production facilities. So that means possibly about 14,000 lost jobs.
The exact impact is not clear on the South Buffalo factory which the state of New York built originally as a $750 Million solar panel plant in 2017. Now as a leased facility, it has reportedly transitioned to be a producer of Tesla vehicle charging stations, vehicle wiring, and as a data collection and analysis center for its self-driving or autopilot systems for vehicles. The autopilot program was recently boosted with the state announcement of the Tesla addition of a $500 Million supercomputer to process massive amounts of information.
The last reported employment figure according to Buffalo Business Report citing required state reporting was about 1,800 jobs.
A check of the website for the Buffalo plant actually still shows job openings in manufacturing and engineering.
One individual from the Buffalo plant told 2 On Your Side about being locked out of the corporate e-mail account, met by security guards, and informed of dismissal after arriving early morning for the start of a previously scheduled shift.
The person, who worked for about a year in a diverse plant staff, was told Human Resources would be in contact about severance pay.
Reuters reports other Tesla plants in Texas and California which actually produce Tesla EVs reported layoffs and normal 12 shifts were reduced by hours.
This may coincide with CNBC reporting Tesla stock fell 31 percent in recent months as the company's EV sales flattened out with more recognized competition for electric vehicle production from Chinese companies.
Tesla's actual report on first-quarter earnings is expected next week on April 23rd.
One final note is the apparent soon to open appearance of a new Tesla vehicle dealer and service center right across the street from the Tesla factory on South Park Avenue.
In a statement to 2 on Your Side, State Senator Sean Ryan says:
"As Chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Economic Development, and Small Business, I keep a close eye on Tesla's South Buffalo gigafactory. Reports of layoffs in Buffalo are always concerning, and my thoughts are with the workers impacted and their families.
Tesla is contractually obligated to meet the job numbers that it agreed to, and New York State has the ability to claw back the company's incentives if necessary. I am monitoring this situation as it develops, and I will do my part to ensure Tesla is held to the commitment it has made to Buffalo."