Electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla filed an appeal against the National Labor Relations Board or NLRB's ruling, which ordered the company's CEO Elon Musk to delete an anti-union tweet.
Elon Musk's anti-union tweet debate
According to Reuters, Tesla is also requesting that the US Court of Appeals review the board's decision that the vehicle company breached US labor law after it fired a union activities.
The tweet in question was posted by the CEO back in 2018. Musk wrote that nothing is stopping the Tesla team at their car plant from voting union, and added "Could do so tomorrow if they wanted. But why pay union dues and give up stock options for nothing? Our safety record is 2x better than when plant was UAW & everybody already gets healthcare."
Last month in March, the NLRB ordered Tesla to make Elon Musk delete the tweet and to publicly address the unlawful statement at all of its sites, and to include speech that says "We will take appropriate steps to ensure Elon Musk complies with our directive," as per Reuters.
The NLRB told Tesla to reinstate a former employee and revoke a ban on the sharing of union details in its car park without prior company permission.
Tesla workers complaint
Tesla workers at its Fremont plant had been been trying to form a union with the United Auto Workers, amid grueling working conditions, according to Business Insider.
Furthermore, Tesla employees also accused the vehicle company of firing employees who were staying at home during the pandemic, despite telling the workers that they were able to do so.
In a report by the The Washington Post, at least 5 employees were fired at the time.
The factory in Fremont, California reopened in May 2020, and Musk reassured nervous workers that they would not have to report to work if they feel uncomfortable showing up at the factory during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite orders from Alameda County to remain closed, the Tesla factory reopened.
The EV company then sued the county, claiming that its shutdown contradicted California's broader COVID-19 guidance and Musk threatened to move the factory out of the state.
Alameda County official ultimately allowed the factory to reopen on May 18, and Tesla eventually dropped the lawsuit.
Musk then sent an email to employees that same week aiming to answer questions about pandemic concerns. Musk wrote that he will be on the line personally helping wherever he can but if the employees are uncomfortable coming back to work they are not obligated to do so.
A few days later, Tesla's HR department sent an email reinstating its attendance policy and outlining a process to claim unpaid leave through May 31.
Tesla did not send any further guidance after May 31, and employees stated that they thought the email from Musk was accurate of the company's policy, and kept their managers updated through June.
However, Tesla has reportedly been cracking down on workers who told their supervisors that they prefer to stay home to avoid catching the virus. An employee stated that he was fired after opting to stay home because his one-year-old son has a respiratory condition.
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Written by Sieeka Khan
