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Tesla Files Lawsuit Demanding Reopening of Plant As Musk Faces Criticism (reuters.com) 256

Posted by EditorDavid from the judgment-day dept.
Because a California county is preventing Tesla from reopening its plant, "The County's position left us no choice but to take legal action," Tesla announced Saturday. Reuters reports: Tesla filed a lawsuit against the county in San Francisco federal court on Saturday, calling the continued restrictions a "power-grab" by the county since California's governor had said on Thursday that manufacturers in the state would be allowed to reopen.... The county said it does not consider Tesla an essential business. County officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit.

The outspoken Musk also took to Twitter on Saturday to complain and threatened to leave the state. "If we even retain Fremont manufacturing activity at all, it will be dependen (sp) on how Tesla is treated in the future," he tweeted, referring to the San Francisco Bay area facility that is Tesla's only U.S. vehicle factory.
One member of the California state government's Assembly tweeted a three-word response: "F*ck Elon Musk." Then they followed it up with a longer tweet. "I'm tired of subsidizing a company that continues to put workers at risk, union busts & bullies public servants."

And an Inc. magazine columnist argues "Elon Musk is bluffing... Tesla isn't going anywhere," calling Musk's remarks "mostly a personality-driven publicity stunt by a tech billionaire." Building a new manufacturing facility from the ground up, or even retrofitting an existing plant isn't something that happens quickly... [Reuters cited an analyst at Wedbush who estimated that relocating Tesla's production would take between 12 and 18 months.] Obviously, no one can fault Musk for being frustrated that Tesla is unable to reopen its factory. Continuing as a business when you're unable to actually build the products you sell is no easy task. And Tesla's founder and CEO hasn't been shy about his feelings towards the Covid-19 lockdown...

Right now, however, Tesla's biggest problem isn't that it can't turn the assembly lines back on. Right now, its biggest problem is that it's hard to tell when to take its leader seriously. If, for example, GM's CEO, Mary Barra, said that the company was frustrated with how Michigan was handling the coronavirus pandemic and was moving the company's HQ out of the state as a result, it would be astonishing news. Thousands of people would worry about their jobs; the state would have seek to address the comment. In other words, people would take it seriously.

Not so, Musk's tweets, which are met with head shakes and smirks. That's a big deal, now more than ever.
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Tesla Files Lawsuit Demanding Reopening of Plant As Musk Faces Criticism More

Tesla Files Lawsuit Demanding Reopening of Plant As Musk Faces Criticism

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  • covidiocracy (Score:5, Funny)

    by Reverend Green ( 4973045 ) on Sunday May 10, 2020 @01:38PM (#60044664)

    Totalitarian Covidiots sure do hate benevolent supergenius National Hero Elon Musk.

    • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

      by presidenteloco ( 659168 )
      There was an article yesterday about how Elon Musk understands the exponential function, and strives to make businesses that will grow that way, with a disruptive product.

      Here's the thing. He clearly does NOT understand the operation of the exponential function in an epidemic.

      It's truly disappointing that Elon is being a COVIDIOT. I admire his general smarts and hutzpah, but his mercurial nature, and his knowledge gaps that he doesn't acknowledge cause arrogance, are going to make people lose faith in him.

      • Maybe it's not a question of "high IQ vs low IQ", I think it's a question of "high", period.

      • Can you explain better? (Score:5, Insightful)

        by Okian Warrior ( 537106 ) on Sunday May 10, 2020 @09:29PM (#60046270) Homepage Journal

        There was an article yesterday about how Elon Musk understands the exponential function, and strives to make businesses that will grow that way, with a disruptive product.

        Here's the thing. He clearly does NOT understand the operation of the exponential function in an epidemic.

        Take a look at the coronavirus statistics [worldometers.info] and scroll down below the wall of numbers to the first graph, and note that the function has become linear for the last 5 weeks or so.

        If you take 30,000 as the daily coronavirus cases (slope of the linear portion, rough estimate from "Daily New Cases" further into the link) and note that there have been 1.3 million cases so far, this means that at the current rate it will take approximately 10,000 days for coronavirus to infect the US population!

        Social Distancing and the shutdown has turned the exponential rise into a linear one.

        The original two reasons for the shutdown were that A) we weren't prepared, and B) the pandemic threatened to overwhelm our hospital capacity.

        Well, we're now prepared, and more accurate/recent predictions show that hospitals won't be overloaded. NY and California seem to be the only places at risk, we have two mobile Navy hospitals on standby, and have built overflow hospitals in places where needed. Among many other preparations.

        I honestly don't see how Musk mis-understanding exponential functions follows from the current linear function of the virus

        Can you explain your position more clearly? I'm losing your train of thought here.

        And his business success is largely based on his maintaining peoples' faith in him.

        The success of Tesla is largely based on the quality of the product. The success of SpaceX is based largely on comparisons with other space launch companies, and even NASA.

        • Re: Can you explain better? (Score:4, Insightful)

          by orlanz ( 882574 ) on Monday May 11, 2020 @06:47AM (#60047240)

          Well, we're now prepared, and more accurate/recent predictions show that hospitals won't be overloaded.

          Umm, no we are not. That's the bitching everyone is doing right now. We still do not have enough PPE. Our hospitals are still barely operating. And they are starting to go out of business because a COVID triage isn't a profitable one compared to setting a bone. We still do not have a SOP for a COVID patient. We still do not have good testing.

          The overall curve is only flattening in general because of the lock down. But averages are very much misleading. There are many many hospitals with few COVID cases overall because the virus hasn't gone through their community yet. Why hasn't it gone through their community? Because of the lock down.

          You release the lock down you will have flare ups across the country. But that would be OK if we had the testing capacity to do a smart isolation. Where we only quarantine the folks who test positive. Most of the world figured out testing capacity is a must back in FEB! The US was going to rely on "symptoms " like a fever and coughing to isolate them. And even after finding out in Mar that a high percentage of infected can be spreading the virus for two weeks before showing symptoms, we didn't change gears to align with the world.

          Yeah the lockdown is shit but it bought us time. And we shouldn't just call it shit and unlock because we just sat with our thumbs up out butts the whole time. We should refocus our efforts on making up for the lost time so we can unlock safely.

          There was already an article on /. about how the lock down itself only delays the curve and this is partly true. But the expectation is that we would be racing to achieve combat readiness & strategies with that time. We shouldn't unlock before finishing that race.

          • Re: Can you explain better? (Score:5, Insightful)

            by cayenne8 ( 626475 ) on Monday May 11, 2020 @09:05AM (#60047634) Homepage Journal

            Yeah the lockdown is shit but it bought us time. And we shouldn't just call it shit and unlock because we just sat with our thumbs up out butts the whole time. We should refocus our efforts on making up for the lost time so we can unlock safely.

            In the meantime...we have families broke and going hungry.

            Have you seen the lines outside of the food donations places?

            You also have small businesses (the backbone of the US economy) already going out of business, meaning less jobs out there for when we open up again....

            And...we have states that are only a week or so away from running out of unemployment benefits money.

            At some point, people will start getting violently desperate...they will not stay inside and watch their loved ones go hungry.

            There has to be a balance struck somewhere and we have to find that balance NOW.

            What do you propose?

  • You can't use a model of normal auto plant move to model tesla's move, not equivalent at all. They could be in an existing plant elsewhere in half the time or less because of how differently the things are constructed. This moreover would be the ideal time to move, because a pipeline of sections of assembly still done in California to new location could be set up. A pipeline once filled makes shipping delays disappear.

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by Train0987 ( 1059246 )

      It's an obvious bluff that has spectacularly backfired. Why is he making these threats to re-open a week earlier than Alameda had already planned? Why can't he wait 7 days?

      There are only a few possibilities: Tesla only has a few days of cash left before being insolvent; the parts made at Fremont reflect inventory required as collateral for the billions in debt Tesla has, that lack of parts coming from Fremont will cause the Chinese to seize the China factory (since Musk is already in trouble with them f

      • It is the CEO making statements about his planned actions that will have great effect on the future performance of the company affects the stock price.

        A lawsuit by shareholders can result.

        • I think Musk must be shorting his own company's stock. He's doing everything in his power to make him seem like a problem child to the board (his bosses). Given that he's a brand new father, I'd hate to see what his parenting skills are like. ("dad, why do we live in Antarctica again?" "Freedom, kids, it's about freedom, now shut up and meet your quotas!")

      • seven days for a restaurant can be more than the difference of going broke or not.

        Seven days in a Tesla auto assembly plant means roughly a thousand cars a day not being produced that could be otherwise. How much does each Tesla sell for again? You do the math.

        Especially when auto assembly is the safest job to be in during a pandemic, most workers already have to wear masks anyway and usually do not work with a lot of other people nearby. It makes no sense the Tesla plant was EVER closed.

        Tesla is moving

        • Re:Seven days is a long, long time for any busines (Score:4, Insightful)

          by Train0987 ( 1059246 ) on Sunday May 10, 2020 @03:47PM (#60045194)

          Musk didn't threaten to move the factory, he threatened to move the headquarters! Regardless, Musk got the Fremont plant for pennies on the dollar after Toyota abandoned it, they aren't leaving it - nobody else wants it. Tesla does not have the money to build a new plant anywhere and it would be stunning if a state stepped up with an incentive package after Musk totally screwed NY over on the same deal and now trying to bully the CA govt around.

      • Why can't he wait 7 days?

        Is that a trick question? Because the answer is 7000. And that's a lot of profit.

    • Re: (Score:3)

      by jeremyp ( 130771 )

      Rubbish. There's nothing magic about the way Tesla does production lines. Have you forgotten the model 3 fiasco.

      • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

        by iggymanz ( 596061 )

        Right, 17 moving parts in drivetrain vs. 200 for ICE car, no ignition exhaust or intake/mixing systems..... get a clue, this is supposed to be a tech site.

        • Honestly, for how simple the EV drive train should be I'm surprised Tesla is having so much trouble. When you think about the ICE car companies switching from a product with 200 moving parts to only 17, it will be far easier for them and when they decide to take it seriously they'll have Musk for lunch.

          • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

            by Rockoon ( 1252108 )

            Honestly, for how simple the EV drive train should be I'm surprised Tesla is having so much trouble.

            The trouble here consists of:

            A county in California is going against the wishes of (A) the Governor of California, (B) the Mayor of the City where his plant resides, and (C) the citizens/workers who are volunteering to go back to work.

            The county seats are both ignorant and tribalistic, and the responses here prove that the ignorance tribe is national. The comments here fly in the face of the facts of the situation, such as ignoring that the Governor has approved the reopening, ignoring that the workers

        • The drivetrain is manufactured by Tesla's Nevada factory. Fremont is vehicle assembly/finish.

      • Have you forgotten the model 3 fiasco.

        Tis a bit difficult to remember something that never fucking happened.

        You fucking shorts/shills have no idea how much you reek of desperation.

    • My understanding is that May 18 is the current target date for that area. I do not think that Tesla can relocate in a week or so.

      • It's certainly far cheaper to just implement the county safety guidelines than to move the plant. But Musk is not a reasonable person and instead just wants a fight. Maybe when a CEO gets paid that much the boards need to make their retirement mandatory. Better to have leaders of a company that might feel the pinch in the pocket book if they do a bad job, or leaders that can empathize with the workers.

    • Comment removed based on user account deletion

  • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 )
    Comment removed based on user account deletion
    • yes we must curb power hungry ways of corporations as they treat workers as dispensable, interchangeable parts

      • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

        by ShanghaiBill ( 739463 )

        yes we must curb power hungry ways of corporations as they treat workers as dispensable, interchangeable parts

        If you don't like how a corporation behaves, then don't work there and don't buy their products or services.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

          "Just get a job somewhere else" isn't an option for a lot of people.

          • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

            by grasshoppa ( 657393 )

            Of course it's an option. It's always an option. We are slaves to our corporate masters, in fact having the option is our single greatest power as a worker.

            • "It's always an option."

              But not always a viable one, it varies a lot and it's rarely a simple matter of choice.

              Like in-equality of opportunity, it's more the rule than the exception.

              • It's always an option means it's always a viable option. It may not be one you want to explore, but that's hardly the same thing.

                Employers are under no obligation to provide you with the perfect job. They provide the jobs, and the conditions of those jobs is a function of how much importance they place on finding the right employees. Conversely, it's up to the employees to search for the kind of job they want.

                • Once you consider that any 'high paying' job is going to be in a concrete jungle place that is terrible to live, and waste at least two hours a day for the commute; you find that there really aren't that many options that will actually improve your life once you move there.

                  • Yes, and no one who moves there ever moves away.

                    Christ this is an entitled bunch. I can't say I'm really surprised by it, but I am disappointed. Your employer doesn't owe you shit beyond what they promised you in writing. Once you understand that, truly understand it, your life becomes easier AND better.

                    Truly understanding that, of course, means that the opposite is true; you don't owe your employer anything beyond what you promised in writing.

                • There aren't enough jobs of the type people want to have to go around. Most people put up with bad jobs because they need the money, not because they're devout followers of the free market, and not because they have freedom of job mobility. They do those bad jobs because they're stuck with them.

                  This particular Tesla jobs are factory floor workers. They have no specialized skills that cannot be found in other states, or even other countries if Musk wants to be able to pay workers less while working them fo

                  • Then they (employees ) should improve themselves in some way as to make themselves more valuable.

                    No, I'm not saying "learn to code"; I'm saying gain skills which fetch a higher price. Good managers are always needed, for instance, and that's something anyone can learn on the job.

                    It's ironic that the very same dedication to this entitlement narrative is what holds people back from achieving the success they feel they deserve simply by showing up.

                    You aren't special. You aren't owed shit. You aren't "under

                    • The problem is with workers doing vocational skills. Anyone in the world can do these for the most part. But not everyone can move to anywhere in the world. So while Silicon Valley has a lot of engineers, it also has people that are day laborers, work in manufacturing facility, or so forth. Thus Musk could move the factory but it's doubtful that most of those workers will come along; move it overseas and probably none of them will follow. You could say that everyone should get a college degree, or eve

                    • The problem is with workers doing vocational skills. Anyone in the world can do these for the most part. But not everyone can move to anywhere in the world. So while Silicon Valley has a lot of engineers, it also has people that are day laborers, work in manufacturing facility, or so forth. Thus Musk could move the factory but it's doubtful that most of those workers will come along; move it overseas and probably none of them will follow. You could say that everyone should get a college degree, or everyone should apprentice at a trade, or everyone should go online and learn new stuff, but it essentially is not going to happen. Even if everyone does this, there would still be the demand for low skill workers to do the stuff the richer people don't want to do; walk the dog, change the diapers, mow the lawn, teach the kids, deliver the stuff they bought online. Then those people are going to need other people to assist; to man the brick and mortar stores that average people go to, to teach the kids, to grow the food.

                      (I heard it may be the HQ offices that he's moving, but I doubt many of those workers would be comfortable uprooting themselves and the pay isn't so massive that they'll follow on that account.)

                      Now you're getting it. Let's say the pool of employees willing to do the work for the offer pay shrinks; what happens then? The employer needs to up their game to attract that smaller pool of workers. This is how the economy grows.

                      Your skill level determines your value, it's that simple.

                • "it may not be one you want to explore"

                  You may not want to explore it because the conditions are abusive, or simply bad enough it's not possible for you to meet the requirements. The field is not level, employer and employee wise. For example, if it was, wages would go up rather than rely on immigrant workers, or, wealth disparity would come down rather than permit the economic abuse of workers.

                  • If all that's available to you are what you consider to be bad options, then it's incumbent upon you to improve what you have to offer.

                    Ever notice how some folks always land on their feet? They seem blessed, don't they? 9 times out of 10 it's because these folks intuitively understand that simple premise and don't exhibit an overinflated sense of entitlement. They know precisely how much they're worth and they don't accept less.

            • Having the option to quit is the single greatest power of a worker.

              The workers' need for food, and their attachment to their communities are the single greatest powers of an employ--

              The chief powers of an employer over workers are workers' need for food, their attachment to place, and ability to fire . . .

              Amongst the diverse advantages of employers over workers are the workers' need for food, their attachment to place, the ability to fire them, and the nearly frictionless ability of capital to travel and o

          • Re: (Score:2, Insightful)

            by ShanghaiBill ( 739463 )

            "Just get a job somewhere else" isn't an option for a lot of people.

            Of course it is an option. When a company closes or downsizes, the ex-employees don't curl up and die. They find other jobs, often by moving somewhere else.

            If a corporation is really and truly providing economic opportunities to people who literally have no other option, then perhaps that corporation isn't so evil after all.

            I know several people who boycott Walmart. Yet when I go into my local Walmart, I see employees in wheelchairs. A few of the shelf-stockers appear to have Downs Syndrome. Walmart is

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

              Millions unemployed looking for new jobs right now. How easy do you think it is to get one?

              • Apparently much harder if you live in a state or county that won’t let you return to work. I really wonder what Musk did to piss someone off since this kind of petty local politics has to be personal.

                • I really wonder what Musk did to piss someone off since this kind of petty local politics has to be personal.

                  I don't think it is personal. Many businesses are still closed in Alameda County. This is in the SF Bay Area, the epicenter of nanny-statism.

                  The impact of Covid on the November elections will be interesting to watch. The pandemic itself will be in the rearview mirror but the economic repercussions will likely be even more severe than now. Democrats may take much of the blame since they pushed for longer and harsher lockdowns.

                  • Re: (Score:3)

                    by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

                    Trump will get the blame for not acting fast enough. They will play those videos of him saying it's okay, inject some bleach, not my responsibility, over and over.

        • Done, and done!

        • If you don't like how a corporation behaves, then don't work there and don't buy their products or services.

          You do realize we're talking about companies that exist in meatspace, not online? You don't have to use Twitter, Facebook, Amazon or Google if you don't want to - but most of us have no choice of power company, trash pick-up provider, landline ISP, etc. Jobs are also limited to what's available near where you live, and relocation isn't something most folks can afford.

          If you're well off enough that you consider moving to be a trivial endeavor, you lack the proper context to truly grasp the situation. "Let

        • If you don't like how a corporation works, then you can criticize them. It's still not illegal, yet. You do NOT have to knuckle under because it's a job and a job is the most important thing in the universe. The boss is not your god, and the corporation should not be your religion. You would do better to treat your fellow workers as your allies than to kiss the boss's butt (and catch some butt virus).

        • so good luck with that.

          Oh, and if you start looking at who sits on the board of directors for just about any company above startup you're gonna see a lot of repeated names.

          So go ahead and boycott, you'll just be buying from another company they own or profit from. I guess you could go live the the Ozarks...

        • then don't work there and don't buy their products or services.

          Like Amazon? The place which also busts attempts at unionizing, which has such unrealistic time management goals people are peeing in bottles, where they don't report infections of covid-19, and also the place which asked the consumer to pay for sick leave for its employees [snopes.com].

          I'm sure you've stopped soliciting them, right?

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Kohath ( 38547 )

        yes we must curb power hungry ways of corporations as they treat workers as dispensable, interchangeable parts

        Why wouldn't they just move their operations out of your reach?

    • State and local authorities need to learn that people and businesses have veto power over any dumb rule or law they pass.

      On the other hand, authorities don't have to simply cater to individual people/businesses that propose dumb ideas or, in this case, want to impose risk on others in the community. You'll notice that Elon is happy to send his workers back to close-quarters on the factory floor while he either stays home or works in an isolated office. He seems to be thinking more of himself and investors, who won't be taking any exposure risk, than the actual workers -- how noble of him.

      • Re:Vote with your Feet (Score:4, Insightful)

        by ShanghaiBill ( 739463 ) on Sunday May 10, 2020 @02:06PM (#60044784)

        Elon is happy to send his workers back to close-quarters on the factory floor

        Alameda County is also happy to send the workers back. Just 7 days later.

        If you want perfect safety, the solution is to shut all factories permanently.

      • that propose dumb ideas or, in this case, want to impose risk on others in the community.

        If you think this is the case then you clearly haven't seen Tesla's proposal. There's no risk to anyone in their re-opening strategy. At the moment it was just the government waving its dick around. I mean not entirely without reason. If they did give approval to Tesla than the same clueless people who currently don't know what their re-opening and mitigation proposal is would complain that other companies are being treated unfairly.

        Tesla is in a lose lose situation battling against a peanut gallery who pas

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Kohath ( 38547 )

      Fremont also has very little to offer that another place couldn't. The factory and the auto workers are there, but factories can be built and auto workers can be hired in places where the government actually wants manufacturers to succeed.

      Tesla got their China factory going in under a year.

  • The great American way.
    The ONLY winners are the Lawyers.

    • The great American way. The ONLY winners are the Lawyers.

      Funny, if it is the Great American way, why did the online spat about this lawsuit continue in Russian?

      https://mobile.twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1259309022777233408

      Or maybe "Velikij i Moguchij" is the new American way after all.

      • Funny, if it is the Great American way, why did the online spat about this lawsuit continue in Russian?

        No the real question is, if suing is the Great American Way, then why does Windex still leave streaks on glass?

        I like this game. Common, your turn to say something completely irrelevant again.

  • The health department seemed to be surprised that Tesla was complaining, as they were making progress and should be able to open in a week or two...

    Which gets specifically to the crux of the matter: They don’t understand that days matter to a company like Tesla, and if the haphazard provisions made at other businesses are sufficient then their well thought out plan should likely be sufficient.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by jeremyp ( 130771 )

      No, days don't matter to Tesla - or if they do, they are already screwed. There's no way they are going to relocate their plant to Texas in a couple of weeks.

    • Like Lucy's football opening up is always right around the corner.
  • Comment removed based on user account deletion

    • He'll need to lose an arm in a assembly line accident, maybe a rocket fuel burn facial scar too, and a secret HQ on Mars. But he's going to make a great supervillian.

      Too bad Jason "The Martian" Bourne is already there bulking up on the potato starch in order to kick his ass.

      Best movie of Summer 2021. Already scored an "97% Fresh" on MartianPotatoes.com

  • Their re-opening plan (Score:5, Informative)

    by schweini ( 607711 ) on Sunday May 10, 2020 @02:09PM (#60044794)
    While Elon is behaving like an ass-hat regarding COVID19, to be fair, Tesla has an extensive re-opening plan with a lot of measures to re-open safely.
    https://www.tesla.com/de_DE/blog/getting-back-work?redirect=no [tesla.com]
    And a long PDF:
    https://www.tesla.com/sites/default/files/blog_attachments/Tesla-Return-to-Work-Playbook.pdf?redirect=no [tesla.com]

    Their argument seems to be that they are complying with CA regulations, but that the county is keeping them from opening.

    • Re:Their re-opening plan (Score:5, Informative)

      by Ungrounded Lightning ( 62228 ) on Sunday May 10, 2020 @04:28PM (#60045382) Journal

      I've done some work inside the Fremont plant and the plant of one of his component suppliers, while they were in normal operation.

      They're spacious, clean, well-lit, well ventilated. The worksatations are well separated, as are the workers on the city-street-broad walkway passages. Even without his proposed COVID-19 specific modifications (including the air system) and protective gear, IMHO they're far better environments than anything else that's been kept open or proposed to be re-opened. They shame most hospitals, any grocery store, post offices, and both legacy and fancy new Silicon Valley office space. (The current fad "open plan" offices are a contagious virus' dream.)

      If ANY operation in Silicon Valley that involves multiple people physically working together can be operated with contagion safety comparable to staying sequestered at home and working remotely, it's Tesla in Fremont.

  • I think the stock might be overpriced..

    -Zing!

  • So why are nail salons able to open but not a robotic factory?

    Is SpaceX able to open? They are in California but another county.

  • Not being taken seriously (Score:4, Insightful)

    by t4eXanadu ( 143668 ) on Sunday May 10, 2020 @03:03PM (#60045020)

    Elon Musk, like Donald Trump, has no one to blame but himself if he isn't taken seriously (not that either of them would shoulder blame for anything). Grow up and stop acting like a man baby.

  • Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning are the founders... Elon joined with money later and contributed very little...

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