BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Company-wide layoffs at Tesla will impact some employees at its South Buffalo facility. 7 News has learned employees were notified they lost their jobs by email.
Former Tesla data analyst Jasmine Main contacted our newsroom after she says she received an email Sunday, informing her that her last day of work was April 14.
“At 4:50 this morning, I got an email saying I’m no longer part of the company,” Jasmine said. “One of my teammates messaged me on Instagram, they said check your email. Tried checking my work email, work email was locked. I was confused, so I checked my personal email.”
That was Jasmine’s Monday morning, just as she was getting ready for her work day at Tesla, like she has every weekday for more than a year.
This appears to be part of a larger cost-cutting effort across the company. The Associated Press reports Tesla is planning to lay off about a tenth of its workforce, following dismal first-quarter sales.
In the email to Jasmine, Tesla wrote "over the years, we have grown rapidly with multiple factories scaling around the globe. With this rapid growth there has been duplication of roles and job functions in certain areas. As we prepare the company for our next phase of growth, it is extremely important to look at every aspect of the company for cost reductions and increasing productivity."
The email continues, "Unfortunately as a result, your position has been eliminated by this restructuring."
“I first was in shock, and then all of a sudden I just had a full on mental breakdown, because ‘oh my gosh, I’m really out of a job,’” Jasmine said.
She tells 7 News she received no phone call, no meeting, just a single email a few hours before her shift that she was laid off.
“There is better ways to tell people this. There is better ways to relay news like this.”
The Gigafactory here in South Buffalo opened in 2017 after New York State spent $959 million to lure Elon Musk here.
As part of that deal, Telsa leases the facility for $1 a year until 2027 in exchange for keeping at least 1,460 jobs in Buffalo.
7 News reached out to Tesla and has not received a response.
A spokesperson for New York State says the company has met or exceeded all job obligations since opening, and Tesla has told the state it's too soon to know how these layoffs will affect Buffalo.
A spokesperson for Empire State Development, the state agency overseeing Tesla’s adherence to that agreement shared:
“Empire State Development is monitoring the situation and will work closely with our partners at the New York State Department of Labor to ensure that any impacted workers in New York receive resources and assistance.”
While the pain of suddenly losing her job is still very fresh, Jasmine says that she has already started applying for a new job.
“I have debts to pay off, I want to make sure my bills are paid.”
In 2022, New York State reported that the Buffalo facility employed 1,636 people.
According to the AP, Tesla sales fell sharply late last year, as competition increased worldwide, electric vehicle sales growth slowed, and price cuts failed to attract more buyers.
"The company said it delivered 386,810 vehicles from January through March, nearly 9% below the 423,000 it sold in the same quarter of last year," as reported by the AP.
This comes nearly six months after 7 News uncovered health concerns inside Tesla's South Buffalo facility. Employees reached out about bed bug outbreak in the building. You can more reporter Derek Heid's report here.
