Tesla has asked some of its Fremont factory employees to return to work this week and resume production despite county public health orders requiring minimum operations, according to a report from CNBC citing company emails.
The Palo Alto-based electric car maker headed by Elon Musk reportedly asked dozens of workers to report to the Fremont plant on Wednesday, CNBC reported.
The Alameda County restrictions are in effect until May 3 and have not been relaxed in any way, a sheriff's office spokesman told the network.
In March, when those orders went into effect, Tesla defied the order and continued its operations at the Fremont plant for five more days, arguing with local officials that it should be considered an essential business.
The plant finally shut down on March 24, after which some employees were asked to work from home, some were furloughed and contract workers were let go.
Three employees who work at the Fremont plant and were furloughed shared with CNBC the internal emails sent to them Friday and over the weekend. They did so anonymously, the network said.
Tesla is scheduled to report its first-quarter earnings on Wednesday.
