A few days ago, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, a global electric vehicle industry giant, announced a 10% global layoff through an internal email. The layoffs also involve the Chinese market, where sales staff are the hardest-hit areas, and most of the layoffs are new employees with less than six months of working hours. On April 24, Tesla was revealed to have canceled the admission notice of fresh graduates in China, which sparked heated discussions on the Internet. Is Tesla's breach of contract with a fresh graduate reasonable and legal?
>> global layoffs
The highest percentage in history
Tesla announces 10% global layoffs
On April 15, Tesla, the global giant in the electric vehicle industry, announced that it would lay off 10% of its workforce globally in order to streamline its organizational structure, reduce costs, and prepare for the company's next phase of growth.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk pointed out in an email that the company's rapid expansion has led to duplication of roles and job functions in some departments, so Tesla has decided to lay off 10% of its workforce to improve productivity and efficiency. After the layoffs, Tesla will have a leaner organizational structure, lower costs, and the company will be ready for the next phase of growth.
It is reported that Tesla has more than 140,000 employees around the world, and the 10% layoff, that is, more than 1.4 employees will lose their jobs, the most direct reason is related to the dismal sales performance in the first quarter.
According to the report, this is not the first time Tesla has made layoffs. Since 2017, Tesla has made five mass layoffs, laying off 2%, 9%, 7% and 3% of its employees in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2022. Despite this, Tesla's 10% layoff this year is still the highest in years.
>> layoffs in China
Chinese salespeople are the hardest hit area,
Most of them are new employees who have been working for less than 6 months
It is reported that Tesla's layoffs also involve the Chinese market. According to people familiar with the matter, Tesla's layoff rate in China is far more than 10%, some departments have laid off 30% to 40%, and some departments are even as high as 50%.
According to the report, Tesla's layoff compensation plan is more generous, and the basic plan is "N+3", and N is the number of years of work in Tesla. Because Tesla's base salary is higher, even employees who have worked for less than half a year can get 40,000 to 50,000 yuan.
Recently, many Tesla employees have shared their experiences of being laid off on social platforms such as Xiaohongshu and Weibo, and it is said that the layoffs and compensation are very fast, and they can go through the procedures immediately after receiving the resignation notice, and then receive the money and leave.
A Tesla employee wrote: "When I learned that I had been laid off, I felt like I was on a roller coaster, and I literally lost my job. Think about it in the past few years, I have raised my salary several times, promoted twice, paid all six insurances and one housing fund, and spent more than 10,000 yuan on one operation, which was fully reimbursed by the company...... Coupled with this compensation, more than 30 days of arrears and annual leave, twice the salary, and the shares in hand (although it is not much, it has fallen a lot during this time, but the company has given away more or less money, and there is hope that it will rise again), I am still reluctant. ”
>> the Internet is hotly discussed
Tesla was exposed to the contract with fresh graduates
"It's hard to find a job if you lose your status as a fresh graduate"
On April 24, Tesla was revealed to have canceled the admission notice of fresh graduates in China, which sparked heated discussions on the Internet.
In the past two days, many users who claim to be fresh college students in the class of 2024 have posted their experiences of being withdrawn from Tesla's offer notice on Weibo, Xiaohongshu and other platforms, and at the same time revealed that Tesla will give compensation for one month's salary.
A netizen who was broken by Tesla posted on social platforms that when the spring recruitment was about to end, they suddenly received a notice from Tesla to withdraw their employment, and Tesla provided a unified monthly salary compensation, but it is very difficult to find a job at this point in time, and it will be even more difficult to find a job once the spring recruitment fails and loses the status of a fresh graduate.
Another fresh graduate who was laid off by Tesla wrote: "I received a call from HR this morning, saying that I may be laid off, the news is like a bolt from the blue, I didn't expect that a fresh graduate who is engaged in craftsmanship was unilaterally breached by the company before he went to work, thank Tesla for letting us at the bottom of the fresh college students really graduate and be unemployed." Now at this point in time, the spring recruitment is almost over, the job is gone, and I am in a huge confusion about the future of the whole person. ”
>> Concerned Students
"After the spring recruitment is over, it is difficult to find a job again
I was taught a lesson before I entered the society."
On April 24, a Gale News reporter tried to contact Xiao Chen, a 2024 fresh graduate who had broken his contract. Xiao Chen said that he received a notice of contract cancellation on April 22, and HR said that not only did he terminate the contract with me, but all the fresh graduates recruited this year were cancelled.
However, the compensation promised to be paid one month's salary is almost 10,000 yuan.
Xiao Chen said that he got Tesla's offer at the end of March this year. A few days ago, I was nervous when I learned the news of Tesla's global layoffs, but I didn't expect that my job was really affected, and I was laid off before I graduated.
Xiao Chen said: "I really can't eat for the past two days, I can't sleep at night, and I don't dare to tell my family. I have signed a tripartite agreement with Tesla before, but now the contract has been broken, and I don't know if I can still find a job as a fresh graduate. It's the end of April now, the spring recruitment is basically over, and it's hard to find a job again, I'm really confused, but there's no way, this is also a lesson before entering the society. Originally, this year's employment situation was not good, and I was busy with the graduation defense, so I felt that I might not be able to find a job before graduation. Tesla's HR said on the phone that he would recommend job opportunities, and I hope it will be useful!"
Gale News reporters found that some Chinese car manufacturers threw olive branches to these terminated graduates, such as Weilai Automobile, Zeekr Automobile, Geely Automobile and other car companies all expressed on social platforms that they welcome terminated fresh graduates to submit their resumes. Geely plans to reopen the school recruitment channel to give more opportunities to outstanding fresh graduates.
>> lawyer's interpretation
Fresh graduates have disputes with their employers
Labor law and labor contract law do not apply
Is Tesla's breach of contract with fresh graduates and compensation for one month's salary of fresh graduates reasonable and legal? How to protect the employment rights and interests of fresh graduates? On April 24, a Gale News reporter contacted Zhao Liangshan, a senior partner of Shaanxi Hengda Law Firm and a well-known public interest lawyer, to interpret it.
Zhao Liangshan believes that Tesla's breach of contract and compensation for one month's salary of fresh graduates is unreasonable, because fresh graduates have special attributes, and special protection should be given to such people, especially in the special period of spring recruitment, for fresh graduates, it is more difficult to find a job, and it is more appropriate to give fresh graduates a buffer period of 2 to 3 months, so it is appropriate to pay 2 to 3 months' wages to fresh graduates.
Zhao Liangshan said that fresh graduates will generally sign an employment agreement for college graduates with schools and employment units, which is different from labor contracts, and if the employment unit violates the agreement, it should bear the liability for breach of contract agreed in the agreement. If the fresh graduates have not signed the employment agreement for college graduates, but the employment unit has issued an offer notice to the graduates, and the employment unit no longer hires the fresh graduates, the employer shall be held liable for the negligence of the employment unit. Therefore, the Labor Law and the Labor Contract Law are not applicable to the disputes between fresh graduates and the employer, and the liability can only be pursued in accordance with the provisions of the Civil Code on liability for negligence or breach of contract, and the Civil Code can only be applied.
Zhao Liangshan suggested that in order to better protect the employment rights of fresh graduates, fresh graduates should sign an employment agreement for college graduates with schools and employment units, and the agreement should be as clear as possible to stipulate the specific liquidated damages for the breach of the contract by the employment unit. In the event of a dispute, fresh graduates can first negotiate with the employer amicably, and if the negotiation fails, they can file a civil lawsuit with the court to protect their legitimate rights and interests.
Huashang Daily Gale News reporter Guo Ji edited by Dong Lin