Tesla flying employees to help Model 3 production: Report

Model 3 production has put a strain on Tesla’s finances.Tesla

• Tesla is bringing in non-manufacturing employees to help at its vehicle and battery production factories as it seeks to maintain a production rate of 5,000 Model 3 sedans each week, CNBC first reported.
• While Tesla has reassigned workers in the past to help boost production, the company is including a wider range of employees in the effort, including some from its energy business, according to CNBC.
• The move has reportedly put pressure on some of Tesla’s other divisions, including vehicle service, where customers are reportedly experiencing longer wait times. 

Tesla is bringing in non-manufacturing employees to help at its vehicle and battery production factories as it seeks to maintain a production rate of 5,000 Model 3 sedans each week, CNBC first reported.

The publication reports that employees from the company’s service centers and energy business are being flown to Fremont, California — where it makes cars — and Sparks, Nevada — where it makes batteries and powertrains — to keep production rates from flagging.

According to CNBC, the move has put pressure on some of Tesla’s other divisions, including vehicle service, where customers are reportedly experiencing longer wait times. Employees reportedly feel pressure as well, taking new, temporary roles to avoid negative performance reviews.

A Tesla representative told Business Insider that temporary reassignments are voluntary and do not have a major effect on production. The representative also said that employees who are reassigned are placed in roles that match their skills, and those who do not opt for reassignments will not be punished with negative performance reviews. 

“This will likely happen less moving forward since, as we’ve previously announced, we’re in the process of smoothing out our deliveries through the quarter,” the representative said.

While Tesla has reassigned workers in the past to help boost production, the company is including a wider range of employees in the effort, including some from its energy business, according to CNBC. The publication reports that some employees have been working temporary assignments away from their homes for weeks.

The effort comes as Tesla continues to ramp up production for the Model 3, the company’s first mass-market vehicle. Tesla struggled to increase production after the vehicle was launched in July 2017 and twice missed its self-imposed deadline to produce 5,000 in a week, but hit that rate at the end of June. During the second quarter, the company made more Model 3s than in the prior three quarters combined, in part due to a new production line the company assembled in an outdoor, tent-like structure.

The Model 3 has also put a strain on Tesla’s finances, as the company has posted significant losses in the quarters since it was launched. Musk has said the company will become profitable in the second half of this year, despite skepticism from some Wall Street analysts. In June, Tesla laid off around 9% of its employees.

Tesla will report its second-quarter earnings on Wednesday.

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