SpaceX is facing a lawsuit from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) alleging that the company illegally fired employees for writing an open letter criticizing Elon Musk, its CEO.
A group of employees from SpaceX wrote an open letter last year to express their concern about how Musk’s behavior “is a frequent source of distraction and embarrassment”. At that time, Musk was trying to acquire Twitter, which he later renamed as “X” after taking control of the company. Shortly after, SpaceX fired the employees who helped write the letter.
In the complaint filed this Wednesday, the NLRB accuses SpaceX of interrogating workers about their involvement in the letter and telling employees not to discuss these interviews. NLRB spokesperson Kayla Blado told Reuters that SpaceX violated workers’ federal right to collectively press for better conditions.
The labor agency claims that SpaceX “created an impression of surveillance” by reading and displaying screenshots of messages between employees, and adds that the company tried to prevent employees from sharing the open letter. SpaceX also allegedly “invited employees to resign and threatened to fire them” if they participated in organized activities.
The NLRB is asking SpaceX to post a notice about employee rights for 120 days and wants the company to write apology letters to each of the employees it fired, among other things. A hearing with an administrative law judge from the NLRB is scheduled for March 5, 2024, unless SpaceX attempts to reach a settlement on the charges. Any decision made by the judge can be appealed to the board and taken to the federal appeals court.
