As Elon Musk orders Tesla staff back to the office, many tech companies are doing the oppositeA sternly worded internal email, apparently sent by Elon Musk ordering people to either return to the office or leave Tesla, is raising eyebrows in a time when employees are increasingly seeking flexible work arrangements. 

Social Sharing

AirBnB and Ubisoft Montreal let employees decide where they want to work

Jaela Bernstien · CBC News(Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg)comments

A sternly worded internal email, apparently sent by Elon Musk ordering Tesla employees to either return to the office or leave, is raising a lot of eyebrows at a time when employees are increasingly seeking flexible work arrangements. 

In a screenshot of the email, shared on Twitter, the richest man in the world warns employees at his electric car company that remote work is no longer acceptable.

Musk replied to the leaked email on Twitter and said people who think coming into work is antiquated "should pretend to work somewhere else."

Just two days after that order was issued, Reuters reported that Musk sent an email to executives titled "pause all hiring worldwide." In the email, he said he had a "super bad feeling" about the economy and needs to cut about 10 per cent of jobs at Tesla.

The company and its subsidiaries employ almost 100,000 people.

Elon has sent this second email out to the Tesla team <a href="https://t.co/BBGtyZngpu">pic.twitter.com/BBGtyZngpu</a>

&mdash;@WholeMarsBlog

The hard-line approach on working arrangements from the controversy-prone billionaire, who once tweeted "the coronavirus panic is dumb," strongly contrasts against how some other CEOs — particularly those in the tech and startup world — are handling this latest phase of working in a pandemic. New research also suggests it's something employees value as much as a raise, and that it could even contribute to diversity in the workplace.

Vancouver-based entrepreneur Greg Gunn said he'll give Musk credit for being very clear about what he wants from his employees. 

• AnalysisWhy Elon Musk's free speech crusade for Twitter may stumble

• Twitter shareholders sue Elon Musk, alleging his antics have deflated stock price

"It's a power move," Gunn said. "Tesla historically has been a great place to work and it's been a coveted place to work."

But he said Musk is ultimately "endorsing an old way of building businesses." He ultimately finds the order disappointing.

WATCH | Hybrid work schedules becoming more common: 

Hybrid work the norm as office workers head back

2 months agoDuration 0:55On the streets of downtown Toronto on Monday morning, a number of workers spoke to CBC on their way into the office. While their circumstances differ, on the whole they were pleased to be back, and expecting a mix of office life and working from home to be their norm from now on.

Gunn co-founded Canadian company Commitin 2019, which has always been fully remote. The professional network, which has no physical headquarters, is an online community where startup engineers get paid to find their next career opportunities.

As someone who is strongly in favour of remote workplaces, Gunn said the approach allows him to recruit the best people for the job, regardless of where they live.

He said it also removes obstacles that can make it difficult for some people to integrate into a physical workspace.

"There's the subtle politics and social capital that you have to gain in an office that, if you're a caretaker or maybe you have some neurodiversity qualities, it creates barriers."

Ontario public service more flexible than Musk

While remote work is impossible or impractical for many fields of work, such as health care and education, various sectors are offering different options for employees in this latest phase of the pandemic. 

Even outside the tech sector, Musk's approach to enforcing full-time office work is stricter than some more traditional workplaces.

• Gas prices have never been higher — but Canadians still aren't jumping on public transit

The Ontario public service, which includes about 60,000 public servants, so far requires staff who were working remotely to come into the office a minimum of three days a week.

"The OPS remains committed to providing employees with flexibility," Ontario Treasury Board Secretariat spokesperson Kyle Richardson said in an email to CBC News.