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Controversial two-time presidential hopeful Donald Trump, has brought workers' rights to the forefront of the US presidential race, praising X owner Elon Musk’s treatment of employees at the former Twitter.
In an audio chat between the two high-profile right-wingers, Trump was effusive about Musk’s attitude to workers who criticised his “no-nonsense” approach that saw him make 6,000 staff redundant (around 80% of the company) following his $44billion takeover in 2022.
Since the takeover, Musk has been heavily criticized for his handling of the social media platform and the direction the business is taking.
The current estimated valuation of the company of just under $14billion is $30billion less than Musk paid for it. Several large advertisers have since departed from the platform (some of which Musk is threatening with legal action) and the number of users is said to be down by 23% since the takeover.
In the two-hour audio chat with Trump, which was beset by early technical glitches, the former president praised Musk for his handling of employees.
“I love it," Trump said. “You're the greatest ... I mean, I look at what you do. You just walk in and you just say, ‘You wanna quit?’ They go on strike, I won't mention the name of the company, but they go on strike and you say, ‘That's OK, you're all gone ... Every one of you is gone’.”
How unions reacted to the Trump-Musk interview
Response to the comments came from the United Auto Workers union which filed federal labor charges against Trump and Musk for threatening to intimidate workers who go on strike.
The charges claim the former president and the Tesla CEO had “interfered with, restrained or coerced employees” who were exercising their right to organize against the company, “suggesting he would fire employees engaged in protected concerted activity, including striking.”
UAW president Shawn Fain, said in a no-holds-barred statement: “When we say Donald Trump is a scab, this is what we mean. Both Trump and Musk want working class people to sit down and shut up, and they laugh about it openly. It’s disgusting, illegal, and totally predictable from these two clowns.”
“They thumb their nose at labor law and there has got to come a reckoning in this country where the billionaires and the corporate class and employers are held accountable when they break the law,” he said elsewhere.
The office of campaign rival Kamala Harris also issued a statement on the interview, describing Trump and Musk as "self-obsessed rich guys who will sell out the middle class and who cannot run a livestream in the year 2024.”
A clip of the exchange was also shared, captioned with “Trump praises billionaire Elon Musk for firing workers who were striking for better pay and working conditions”.
Former Twitter worker wins record payout
In a further timely twist, X (formerly Twitter) has been ordered to pay a record fine of more than €550,000 (£470,000) to a former senior employee at its European HQ in Dublin, after it was found to have dismissed him unfairly when he failed to respond to an email from Elon Musk calling on staff to be “extremely hardcore”.
The 2022 email said: “Going forward, to build a breakthrough Twitter 2.0 and succeed in an increasingly competitive world, we will need to be extremely hardcore. This will mean working long hours at high intensity. Only exceptional performance will constitute a passing a grade.”
It went on: “If you are sure that you want to be part of the new Twitter, please click yes on the link below,” adding that staff who did not, would receive three months’ severance pay.
In his findings, published in a 73-page decision document, Ireland’s Workplace Relations Council (WRC) adjudicator Michael MacNamee, said that 24 hours was not “reasonable notice”.
Barry Kenny, a solicitor for Rooney, concluded: “It is not okay for Mr Musk, or indeed any large company to treat employees in such a manner in this country. The record award reflects the seriousness and the gravity of the case.”
