Enlarge image
Elon Musk at a rocket launch in Cape Canaveral: pretty aloof
Photo: Paul Hennessy / imago images/ZUMA Wire
Elon Musk makes no compromises when it comes to freedom of expression - at least that's what he says: "Free speech is essential for a functioning democracy," the multi-billionaire tweeted in March before announcing the purchase of Twitter.
With the deal he also wants to ensure free speech on the social network, so he promises.
But in his space company SpaceX there are apparently limits to freedom of expression: As the New York Times reports, citing three people familiar with the matter, the company has kicked out several employees for their criticism of Musk.
Employees who wrote an open letter to Musk and helped distribute it were fired.
The paper quotes an email from SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell, according to which the company has laid off several employees.
The open letter made employees feel harassed and bullied.
"Bombarding thousands of people in the company with repeated unsolicited e-mails and asking them to sign letters (...) during working hours is unacceptable," it says.
“Please stay focused on the SpaceX mission and use your time to do the best work.
This is how we will get to Mars«.
With a fortune of more than $260 billion, Musk is considered the richest person in the world.
The busy businessman not only runs Tesla, SpaceX and Neuralink, but now also wants to take over Twitter.
The price is said to be around $44 billion.
The 50-year-old had caused the ex-SpaceX employees' displeasure by demanding, among other things, that employees should spend at least 40 hours in the office.
Allegations of sexual harassment also made headlines.
Musk dismissed the allegations as "completely untrue" - and responded on Twitter with a penis joke.
His comments apparently caused horror among parts of the SpaceX workforce.
In the internal letter, they described Musk as a "distraction and embarrassment" - and demanded that SpaceX distance itself from Musk.
"As our CEO and most prominent spokesman, Elon is considered the face of SpaceX," the Wall Street Journal quoted from the open letter.
"Every tweet he posts is a de facto public statement from the company."
mic/Reuters