Elon Musk: Tesla Employee-Strength Will Rise Despite Cuts

Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said Tesla Inc.’s total headcount will increase, a day after telling employees he plans to reduce salaried staff by 10%.

Musk had previously told staff that the job cuts won’t apply to those who build cars or battery packs.  (AP)

Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said Tesla Inc.'s total headcount will increase, a day after telling employees he plans to reduce salaried staff by 10%.

The number of salaried employees will be “fairly flat” even as overall headcount rises, the billionaire said in a tweet Saturday. Musk had previously told staff that the job cuts won't apply to those who build cars or battery packs, according to people who received an internal memo Friday.

Shares of the automaker slumped more than 9% Friday after news of the job cuts emerged. Reuters had previously reported that Musk told some company executives he was cutting the number of Tesla employees broadly because he had a “super bad feeling” about the economy.

About 39% of roughly 100,000 workers at Tesla were “production line employees,” according to the company's annual report.