Tesla Asks Which Jobs Are Critical, Stoking Layoff Fears (1)

Tesla Inc. staff are bracing for potential job cuts after managers were asked to affirm whether each of their employees’ positions is critical.

US managers had to make the binary assessment of their deputies’ roles in recent days, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. Tesla sent out the single-line query for each job after canceling some employees’ biannual performance reviews, some of the people said.

The ask was consistent with Elon Musk’s emphasis on cost-cutting efforts in the midst of a marked slowdown in Tesla’s sales growth. ...