Elon Musk made headlines recently when he terminated all employees within Tesla's electric-vehicle charging division, including two senior-level staff members and the entire 500-member Tesla Supercharger team. Details surrounding the abrupt mass firings have emerged, sourced from former employees who shared insights with Reuters.

Just prior to the sweeping dismissals, Musk had a meeting with Rebecca Tinucci, the former chief of Tesla's Supercharging division. Former employees, speaking to Reuters, expressed optimism about Tinucci's meeting with Musk, given the division's pivotal role in Tesla's operations. They believed Musk would endorse plans for expanding the charging network, especially since Tinucci had already implemented staff reductions as part of a broader strategy.

However, the meeting took a sour turn. Musk reportedly expressed dissatisfaction with Tinucci's presentation and advocated for further layoffs. Despite Tinucci's pushback, asserting that additional job cuts would undermine the charging-business fundamentals, Musk proceeded to dismiss Tinucci and her entire team of 500 employees.

This unexpected decision rattled former employees and disrupted operations within the Supercharging division, which had been regarded as a cornerstone of Tesla's success and a significant driver of its electric vehicle sales, with Tesla Superchargers representing over 60% of US high-speed charging ports.

Despite the upheaval, a Bloomberg report suggests that Tesla has rehired some workers from the Supercharger division weeks after their initial dismissal.

Insights into the mass layoffs were provided by eight former charging-division employees, a contractor, and a Tesla email addressed to external vendors. According to sources, only Musk and Tinucci were present at the pivotal meeting that preceded the layoffs announcement.

Additionally, a letter from a Tesla global supply manager to Supercharger contractors and suppliers instructed them to halt construction projects and material purchases, acknowledging the challenging transition period.

Tesla's energy team, responsible for selling solar and battery storage products, was tasked with assuming control of the Supercharger network and managing ongoing charger construction projects. However, contractors noted a lack of clarity from Tesla staff regarding the transition process.