Tesla Shanghai factory workers appeal to Elon Musk after being told of bonus cut

Tesla China-made Model 3 vehicles are seen during a delivery event at its factory in Shanghai, China Jan 7, 2020. REUTERS/Aly Song

SHANGHAI  -Workers from Tesla’s Shanghai factory are taking to social media to appeal to Elon Musk and the Chinese public after being informed over the weekend about planned cuts to their performance bonuses, according to online posts and workers.

Posts from online users began appearing on forums such as Baidu Tieba late last week. Some took to Twitter, owned by Musk and blocked in China, to tweet to Elon Musk, his mother Maye Musk, and Tesla’s accounts.

“Please pay attention to the performance (bonus) of frontline workers at Tesla’s Shanghai factory being arbitrarily deducted,” said one post on Twitter in a reply to a tweet from Musk about a SpaceX launch.

Two workers told Reuters they were informed by their supervisors over the weekend about a cut to their quarterly bonus payout, which is linked to the factory’s performance.

They said Tesla supervisors mentioned a “safety incident” when asked about reasons for the bonus cut. Several online posts claimed workers at the Shanghai plant were being unfairly punished for an incident this year at a factory where one worker is alleged to have died.

A Tesla worker died in a factory-floor accident earlier this year, four people with knowledge of the incident told Reuters.

Reuters could not independently confirm details of the accident.

Tesla and Elon Musk did not immediately respond to requests for comment.