Tesla is refuting claims a woman made Sunday suggesting that the Silicon Valley company used a legal loophole in California to cheat her husband out of pay and benefits shortly after he was laid off.
A woman named Kari Pollock said on Twitter that Tesla denied her husband pay and benefits the company promised to provide before the man was laid off. She did not reveal the identity of the man, nor has she responded to The Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment, but a social media search shows her linked to Daniel Pollock of Freemont, CA.
“We’re shattered. Devasted. And fucking broke. @Tesla, shame on you. I know lay offs are a part of life, but you really took the low road and kicked your loyal employee in the balls when he was down,” said Pollock, whose LinkedIn profile describes her as a graphic designer.
Her comments come less than a week after Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced a 7 percent cut in the electric car maker’s workforce. Tesla’s $7,500 tax credit started phasing out Jan. 1, 2019, to $3,750 around mid-year, according to Tesla’s website. GM is entering a similar stage. it is expected to hit the 200,000 vehicle point with sales of its Chevrolet Bolt EV, among other vehicles.
Robotic arms assemble Tesla’s Model S sedans at the company’s factory in Fremont, California, June 22, 2012. Tesla began delivering the electric sedan to customers on June 22. REUTERS/Noah Berger
Pollock went on to suggest that Tesla used various legal loopholes to deny her husband contractually agreed upon pay. (RELATED: Elon Musk Is Cutting Thousands From Tesla’s Workforce)
“Turns out CA has some airtight laws about giving employees 60 day notice of lay offs. Tesla has a brilliant work around, we are discovering,” Pollock wrote. “So they gave us 60 days on payroll (base pay, those bonus payments are gooone) but there’s a fun string attached….”
“If we don’t sign the exit packet, including an NDA and other blah blah blah papers, they will pull the 60 days of payroll. I’m not a labor attorney but that sure sounds like horse shit.” California employers are only legally obligated to pay severance if a compensation package is promised in the employee-employer contract, or by way of another guarantee.
Tesla, for its part, dismissed Pollock’s claims. “When someone leaves the company, voluntarily or involuntarily, they do not receive equity that has not yet vested,” a company spokeswoman told TheDCNF. “Like other impacted Tesla employees at our Fremont factory, Mr. Pollock will receive full pay and benefits for 60 days, plus his next quarterly equity award, which was scheduled to vest on March 5th. We reached out to Mr. Pollock this weekend to clarify this.”
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