Tesla, which previously reopened its Fremont electric car factory in defiance of a coronavirus health order, has had more than 130 employees who tested positive for the deadly virus, according to a blog claiming to have received information from the company.
“An internal data leak shows that Tesla is seeing an increase in COVID-19 ‘exposure’, primarily at its Fremont, California, factory,” the Electrek blog reported. “So far, more than 130 Tesla workers have tested positive with more test results pending, and a dozen more contractors and temporary employees involved in Tesla operations have also tested positive.”
Tesla did not immediately respond to questions about the report. Alameda County health officials also did not respond to questions.
Electrek did not say which Tesla facilities the alleged positive virus employees worked at.
Palo Alto-based company CEO Elon Musk had battled Alameda County health officials over a work-from-home order that had closed the Fremont plant for weeks. The plant reopened for a week in defiance of the order, and the automaker sued the county in May and then withdrew the lawsuit after the two sides reached a settlement allowing Tesla to resume vehicle production in Fremont. .
The Tesla worker safety chief in June emailed employees saying the company knew of some employees who had contracted coronavirus from outside the workplace, but that there had been no contact transmissions between workers at the company. Tesla factory.
Also in June, representatives of worker groups met outside the Fremont plant, demanding more information on the reported coronavirus cases. Tesla in a July 2 blog post cited “very few cases” at the company, adding: “Those who have been affected have returned to work or are recovering from home.”
State workplace safety regulator Cal / OSHA said in June that it was investigating Tesla’s main plant and other company facilities in Fremont.
“The investigations are active and ongoing,” Cal / OSHA said at the time, adding that the department “takes seriously its mandate to investigate workplace accidents, deaths and workplace complaints throughout California.”
The agency declined on Wednesday to say whether the investigations involved coronaviruses.
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