Tesla employees denied details on firm’s virus cases
Tesla told Alameda County officials that some of its Fremont workers have tested positive for the coronavirus, but details are scant and some employees in the sprawling manufacturing facility say the electric carmaker is not sharing information internally about the infections.
“The worst thing they can do is not say anything,” said Branton Phillips, a materials handler who queues up parts for assembly on the manufacturing line producing Tesla’s Model S and Model X vehicles. “They said you don’t need
to know unless you’re on the trace end of it,” referring to efforts to trace infected workers’ contacts.
Concern about the cases spread among plant workers after the Washington Post reported that two workers tested positive for the virus last month. It was not clear where the workers had acquired the infection, on the job or elsewhere.
Employees working in various Tesla departments at the plant told The Chronicle they had received little to no communication from the company about the infections.
Phillips said he had asked Tesla’s safety department about the coronavirus, and was told there were no cases on the lines where he worked.
With a significant other at home who faces greater risk from the virus because of other ailments, Phillips said he needed to know more to protect himself and his family.
“It’s my right, I work to live and I’ve got nine years to retire. I do not want to get this terrible thing,” and put his partner at risk, Phillips said.
The health and safety team at Tesla assured him they were encouraging workers with virus symptoms to stay home as well as testing them and tracing other workers they had been in contact with, Phillips said, adding that he appreciated those efforts.
Neetu Balram, a spokeswoman for the Alameda County Public Health Department, declined to provide further detail about the cases, citing privacy law.
“We are working with Tesla to investigate and ensure appropriate public health measures are in place,” she wrote in an email.
The health department had previously said it could not share information about Tesla’s coronavirus safety plan due to its “proprietary nature.”
“We came to an agreement on safety practices and protocols, which we are satisfied will protect against the spread of infection,” Balram said.
Manufacturers in Alameda County must comply with Cal/OSHA standards as well as California Department of Public Health and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines to operate during the pandemic, Balram said.
Tesla did not respond to an emailed request for comment. Two Tesla executives, health and safety chief Laurie Shelby and corporate physician Jim Craner, also did not respond to the request for comment.
Factory worker Matthew Krizan, who works on vehicle bodies, said he is worried about the lack of transparency at Tesla around the virus in the workforce.
Going into the summer with a pandemic still under way, Krizan said in a text message that he hopes Tesla will be “transparent about testing and results among its workforce so that we can all take steps to protect ourselves and our families, if necessary.”
Another worker, Carlos Gabriel, has refused to return to work despite the plant’s reopening because he fears contracting the virus. A labor organizer who has been vocal about worker treatment at Tesla in the past, Gabriel began working at the plant in January assembling battery packs for cars but has not worked since March.
Gabriel said he has not been fired or laid off from Tesla because of his healthrelated refusal to report to work, but has had no official word from the company about infections. “I haven’t heard about any confirmed cases, just rumors,” he said. “They’re not being transparent and honest and communicating with the workers.”
In March, Tesla continued operating the plant despite a countywide shelterinplace order. After nearly a week of operating illegally, it agreed to close down, except for some minimal basic functions, and sent workers home with pay.
The company then furloughed many hourly workers and cut pay for others in April.
Workers were called back to the factory in May in a renewed defiance of shelterinplace, despite ongoing negotiations with the county over requirements for reopening.
The company also sued Alameda County in federal court. CEO Elon Musk called shelterinplace orders “fascist” on Twitter and demanded Tesla be allowed to resume production.
The county ended up allowing Tesla to reopen ahead of schedule, and Tesla dropped the lawsuit.
Workers are now required to wear masks at all times and enter the facility through fullbody thermal scanners to guard against the virus.
Partitions have also been installed in break rooms, and social distancing at the facility is required, according to a proposed safety plan released by Tesla in May.
Neither Tesla nor Alameda County have released the final plan adopted by the company after review by local health officials.