Federal labor officers accused the rocket firm SpaceX on Wednesday of illegally firing eight staff for circulating a letter essential of the corporate’s founder and chief government, Elon Musk.

In response to a grievance issued by a regional workplace of the Nationwide Labor Relations Board, the corporate fired the workers in 2022 for calling on SpaceX to distance itself from social media feedback by Mr. Musk, together with one by which he mocked sexual harassment accusations in opposition to him.

The letter circulated by the workers additionally referred to as on SpaceX, which has greater than 13,000 staff, to make clear its harassment insurance policies and implement them persistently.

The labor board grievance mentioned the corporate’s president and chief working officer, Gwynne Shotwell, had illegally restricted staff from circulating the letter, and it recognized related infractions by different executives and managers.

The case is scheduled to go earlier than an administrative decide in early March except SpaceX agrees to a settlement beforehand.

“At SpaceX the rockets could also be reusable, however the individuals who construct them are handled as expendable,” mentioned Paige Holland-Thielen, one of many staff who had been fired. “I’m hopeful these expenses will maintain SpaceX and its management accountable for his or her lengthy historical past of mistreating employees and stifling discourse.”

SpaceX didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.

Mr. Musk has generally taken a tough line towards his firms’ staff, as when he laid off roughly half the work drive at Twitter, now referred to as X, shortly after shopping for the corporate in 2022. He later fired roughly two dozen inner critics at Twitter, which has misplaced about 80 p.c of the 7,500 staff who labored there when the billionaire took over.

Tesla, the place Mr. Musk is chief government, has spent years litigating a case by which the labor board accused it of firing an worker for partaking in union exercise. The board dominated in 2021 that the firing was unlawful and ordered Tesla to reinstate the employee with again pay, a choice {that a} federal courtroom affirmed. The corporate is interesting the case additional.

The Justice Division sued SpaceX in August, accusing it of discriminating in opposition to asylum-seekers and refugees in its hiring, however a decide has issued an injunction blocking that case from transferring ahead.

In December 2021, a former SpaceX worker printed an essay detailing cases of harassment and groping by colleagues that she mentioned went largely unaddressed after she reported them.

The essay provoked outrage throughout the firm, which mentioned it might start an audit of its harassment insurance policies.

The following spring, Enterprise Insider reported that SpaceX had paid $250,000 in 2018 to settle a declare by which an worker accused Mr. Musk of exposing himself and sexually propositioning her. Mr. Musk denied the accusation and joked about it on Twitter.

Not lengthy after, a gaggle of staff started brainstorming concepts for making the corporate much less tolerant of harassment and drafting the letter. Ms. Shotwell was conscious of the hassle and appeared supportive of it, in response to feedback she left on an inner communications platform seen by The New York Instances.

In mid-June 2022, a number of staff circulated their letter to colleagues. The letter referred to as Mr. Musk’s public feedback “a frequent supply of distraction and embarrassment for us” and urged the corporate to “uphold clear repercussions for all unacceptable conduct, whether or not from the C.E.O. or an worker beginning their first day.”

Whereas some managers responded sympathetically, inside a number of hours Ms. Shotwell reprimanded two staff concerned in writing and distributing the letter, Tom Moline and Ms. Holland-Thielen. “Please cease flooding worker communication channels instantly,” Ms. Shotwell mentioned in an e-mail, including, “I’ll contemplate your ignoring my e-mail to be insubordination.”

The following day, the corporate fired Mr. Moline, Ms. Holland-Thielen and three different staff concerned in organizing the letter. It fired 4 others related to the letter in July and August 2022. (The labor board thought of solely eight firings as a result of the ninth worker didn’t file a proper cost.)

The labor board grievance mentioned that the firings had been retaliatory and that Ms. Shotwell and different SpaceX officers had interfered with the workers’ rights to interact in concerted actions which might be legally protected.

It additionally mentioned an organization vp had damaged the regulation by criticizing the letter at a gathering with staff a number of days after it was circulated and “inviting staff to give up in the event that they disagreed with the conduct of chief government officer Elon Musk.” The Instances beforehand reported that an organization vp had advised employees that the letter was an extremist act and that Mr. Musk might do no matter he wished on the firm.

The grievance additionally mentioned a senior human sources official had illegally created the impression of surveillance when she confirmed employees concerned in drafting the letter display pictures of a chat they’d performed on a messaging app.

Ryan Mac contributed reporting.