Tesla employees may lose jobless benefits if they don't return to work

Tesla head of human resources Valerie Workman told workers in an email on Wednesday that furloughed employees who are called back to work but choose not to could lose their unemployment benefits.

According to TechCrunch, the potential loss of benefits was up to the state and Tesla wasn’t penalizing employees for choosing to stay at home.

“Once you are called back, you will no longer be on furlough so if you choose not to work, it may impact your unemployment benefits as determined by your local government agency — and not by Tesla,” Workman wrote in the email. “We completely respect your decision and will support you, without any penalties from us.”

That email differed from others sent by Tesla chief executive officer, Elon Musk, in which he clearly said that if employees felt uncomfortable returning to work, then they should stay at home.

Tesla is preparing to restart production at its factory in Fremont, California, in defiance of the lockdown ordered by local authorities.

Musk tweeted on Monday that the factory was reopening in spite of the stay-at-home order and negotiations between government officials and Tesla continued in the background.

On Tuesday evening, Alameda County said that Tesla could reopen as soon as next week if it implements additional safety recommendations.