35-year-old Matthew Labrot was reportedly fired by Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) for setting up a website criticizing the company's CEO, Elon Musk.
What Happened: Labrot, who was in a management role and trained Tesla sales employees, set up a website called "Tesla Employees Against Elon," which was an open letter to the company to replace Musk as CEO, Business Insider reported on Thursday.
"I was very happy with my position, and I could have continued to work in that role my whole life," Labrot said in the report. However, he began to have doubts about the billionaire ever since his acquisition of Twitter (now X) and his support of the Trump campaign in the run-up to last year’s presidential election.
A turning point came when Musk allegedly performed a Nazi salute at an event for U.S. President Donald Trump. "When your CEO makes one of those decisions, it pulls the company along with it," he said.
Labrot said that Musk's political views affected Tesla sales on the ground as customers abandoned the brand. He also said that Tesla's leadership did not sufficiently guide employees on how to handle "protests and vandalism" against the company.
Labrot also spray-painted his Cybertruck with anti-Musk messages a day after setting up his website as a sign of protest. He was subsequently fired for "using company resources to build a website that did not align with the company’s perspective," the report suggests. Labrot denies the claim and has continued to attend Tesla protests.
Tesla did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s request for comment.
Why It Matters: Musk's EV giant has been grappling with a difficult quarter, where the company experienced a 71% plunge in YoY profits and dwindling sales both in the U.S. as well as in Europe.
However, the company's inventory is piling up, with there reportedly being over 10,000 unsold Cybertrucks currently in the EV giant's U.S. inventory. Musk had also said he would be scaling back on his DOGE commitments to focus on the company.
Be that as it may, Musk's endorsement of right-wing political ideals and close ties to Donald Trump have affected Tesla owners in the country, who continue to deal with rising insurance premiums and vandalism.
Price Action: TSLA gained 3.11% at market close and is trading for $284.82, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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