Bloomberg
Tesla, the electric-car maker led by billionaire Elon Musk, said it is cutting jobs in China after a local newspaper reported the company will reduce staff by 30 per cent.
Tesla will eliminate some positions as it makes structural changes to its business in China, Gary Tao, a local spokesman for the carmaker, said Monday by phone. He said he did not know how many jobs will be affected. The Chinese newspaper Economic Observer reported earlier Tesla will eliminate 180 of the 600 positions at its China unit because sales have not met expectations.
“The purpose is to better respond to the Chinese market,” Mr Tao said. “The team remains stable and strong.”
The current personnel changes started at the beginning of the year, Mr Tao said, declining to provide additional details. The Economic Observer said Tesla's local sales department will cut half its workforce, the most among all its departments, including marketing, public relations and administrative offices.
Local executives including Veronica Wu, Tesla’s former China president, and June Jin, former vice president of communications, have recently left the company. Mr Musk said in January sales in China have been slow because of concerns consumers have over charging electric vehicles.
Tesla, based in Palo Alto, California, started delivering cars in the world’s largest auto market last year. The company has nine stores and service centres in six Chinese cities and has tied up with companies including China Unicom and Soho China to build charging stations.
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