Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk sent an email to employees saying that external contractors would be banned except for those vouched for by employees, Electrek reported May 6.
In the email obtained by Electrek, Musk appeared to have stretched the deadline for contractors to prove their "excellence." However, Musk said Tesla would terminate contractors and subcontractors should they fail to meet Tesla's standards.
During the first-quarter conference call, Musk referred to contractors as "barnacles" and said it was time to scrub them off.
The report did not specify how many of the company's contractors, estimated to be in the hundreds, would be affected.
