SpaceX Allegedly Fires Workers Who Criticized Elon Musk On Twitter

Elon Musk, known for running companies like SpaceX and Tesla, is facing a legal challenge. The U.S. National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) claims SpaceX, under Musk’s leadership, wrongly fired eight employees. 

These employees had written a letter criticizing Musk’s actions and comments on Twitter, which he now owns and calls X.

The letter by these employees mentioned Musk’s behavior on Twitter, saying he made inappropriate and offensive comments. After this letter was shared with SpaceX, those who wrote it were fired. 

The NLRB says SpaceX did this illegally and even tried to stop the letter from spreading. They also allegedly watched and questioned employees about the letter, creating a feeling of being under constant watch.

One of the employees who was fired, Paige Holland-Thielen, spoke out. She said that while SpaceX’s rockets are reusable, the company treats its workers as disposable. This incident shows a pattern where Musk and his companies are accused of not respecting workers’ rights to speak out.

In a separate case, SpaceX settled a claim where it tried to silence an employee’s speech. Musk’s social media company, X, also settled a case where an employee was allegedly fired for protesting a work policy.

In another related issue, Tesla, also led by Musk, was found by the NLRB to have illegally fired an employee who was an activist. This decision is currently being appealed in court.

Now, the NLRB wants SpaceX to apologize to the fired employees and inform all workers about their rights for 120 days. A hearing is set for March 5th, unless SpaceX settles the case before then.

Adding to this, a biography of Musk by journalist Walter Isaacson reveals insights from SpaceX co-founder Tom Mueller. Mueller worked with Musk for over 20 years and described how Musk didn’t like being told something wasn’t possible. 

He said that only those who believed things could be done were included in meetings. The biography also touches on a disagreement between Mueller and Musk during SpaceX’s early days.