Tesla Factory Workers Reveal Pain, Injury and Stress: 'Everything Feels Like the Future But Us' (theguardian.com)

Workers at Tesla's California car factory have been passing out and requiring rides in ambulances, the Guardian newspaper reported on Thursday. The conditions at the factory suggest the lengths the company is going to in order to meet its extremely ambitious production goals, and the tension employees feel between their pride in being part of the company and the stress and exhaustion the company's goals are causing them, according to the report. From the article: Ambulances have been called more than 100 times since 2014 for workers experiencing fainting spells, dizziness, seizures, abnormal breathing and chest pains, according to incident reports obtained by the Guardian. Hundreds more were called for injuries and other medical issues. In a phone interview about the conditions at the factory, which employs about 10,000 workers, the Tesla CEO conceded his workers had been "having a hard time, working long hours, and on hard jobs," but said he cared deeply about their health and wellbeing. His company says its factory safety record has significantly improved over the last year. Musk also said that Tesla should not be compared to major US carmakers and that its market capitalization, now more than $50bn, is unwarranted. "I do believe this market cap is higher than we have any right to deserve," he said, pointing out his company produces just 1% of GM's total output. "We're a money-losing company," Musk added. "This is not some situation where, for example, we are just greedy capitalists who decided to skimp on safety in order to have more profits and dividends and that kind of thing. It's just a question of how much money we lose. And how do we survive? How do we not die and have everyone lose their jobs?" The article also sheds light on the kind of manager Musk is. In early 2016, Musk slept on the factory floor in a sleeping bag "to make it the most painful thing possible. I knew people were having a hard time, working long hours, and on hard jobs. I wanted to work harder than they did, to put even more hours in," he was quoted as saying. "Because that's what I think a manager should do."

Comments

And this is why labor unions are still a thing

[stomv]

It's no wonder that California Tesla employees are considering joining the UAW. If you don't treat your employees right one at a time, they're going to ask that you do so all at once.

Re:Musk is an idiot

[Anonymous Coward]

The stock is still climbing, so who exactly is he conning? If you bought 5 years ago at 30 bucks a share you'd be selling at 313 a share.

Some of you are fucking morons, you just say things that sound good but don't make any sense when compared to easily obtainable facts.

Re:And rechargable cars won't work anyway.

[whoever57]

No, you are showing your ignorance what is wanted in the real world.

So my driveway isn't "the real world"? When I park my electric vehicle and charge it overnight, does it transport itself to an alternative universe? Another reality?

I live with an electric vehicle. I suspect I know a lot more than you do about what's realistic.

Those long trips? They are the exception and, as you pointed out, even faster charging is coming soon.

Today, if you have a Tesla, you probably only need to wait about 30 minutes, and that wait can be while you eat or get a coffee. It's not like filling with gas where you have to stand by the vehicle while it is charging. Remember that you just spent 3-4 hours driving, so you probably need a break anyway.

Re:Some perspective for our non US members...

[Rei]

In reality, there will be bathroom breaks, at least one meal, so add another 2 hours. Now, add two hours for recharge stops

Huh?

So your conception is that you would drive for 9 hours and have two hours of stops.... but you would leave your vehicle unplugged during those stops? And then make two hours of charging stops, charging that you could have done during your already planned stop time?

The thing that makes your conception especially puzzling to me is that people already combine "recharging" and break / meal stops when driving gasoline cars. If they pull off the highway to get a meal, they'll also tend to fill up, or vice versa, since they've already had to take an exit, drive into the nearest town, and stop. The only difference with an EV is that you leave the vehicle connected to the "pump" while you're eating.

Re:Some perspective for our non US members...

[Rei]

Where are these chargers?

Please tell me you know how to use Google. They're every ~100mi / 150km on almost every interstate in the US (more in more densely populated areas), and this is before the big planned expansion.

Now, I have to hope that anywhere along my route offers charging AND that they serve food

Where do you think that chargers are - in the middle of the woods? They're at highway exits, the same sorts of places you find gas stations and restaurants. Generally in the larger cities along the route, where such cities are present.

Click on any charger on the above map. It'll tell you what restaurants (and other things) are around the charger.

The infrastructure is not ready. Period.

Learn to use Google. Period.

Unless you're looking for a vehicle for, say, a trip deep into Canyonlands or the like, it's not a problem. If you're a normal human being who takes interstates to near their destination and then travels less than a couple hundred kilometers off of their turnoff to their destination, there is no problem.