Tesla workers speak out: 'Anything pro-union is shut down really fast'

Elon Musk has said he is 'neutral' about a union but former employees blame their firing on their efforts to organize while current workers say a 'culture of fear' persists

For two years Dezzimond Vaughn was a well-regarded worker at the Tesla factory in Lathrop, California. Then he became involved in trying to organize a union and suddenly his job was on the line.

"They started changing rules without any remorse," Vaughn, a 31-year-old former Tesla computer-numeric-controlled (CNC) heavy machinery operator, told the Guardian. He cited a strict attendance policy Tesla implemented and backdated that deducted points from employees every time they clocked in late or were absent. "We started talking about forming a union, because they wouldn't be able to do the things they're doing, and they somehow found out I was having meetings at my house."