Elon Musk ‘Pounds the table...yell like hell’ when facts are against him: US Labor watchdog

Elon Musk lacks a cogent argument in his legal battle with the US labor board over SpaceX, said National Labor Relations Board general counsel Jennifer Abruzzo, accusing Musk of 'pounding the table," Bloomberg news agency reported.

“If the law is not on your side, and the facts aren’t on your side, then just pound the table and yell like hell,” said Abruzzo.

Last month, Abruzzo’s office issued a complaint accusing SpaceX of illegally retaliating by firing eight workers who circulated an open letter criticizing the billionaire chief executive officer. SpaceX responded the next day by suing the labor board, arguing that its structure and proceedings were unconstitutional.

According to Abruzzo, the eight workers were terminated “for actually bringing up issues that they had around awful, misogynistic, sexist comments, conduct, etc.”

Companies should revisit their use of noncompete provisions in employment contracts that keep workers from switching jobs, Abruzzo said.

She also Abruzzo raised concerns about increased use of artificial intelligence in the workplace, saying that intrusive surveillance of employees or abusive algorithmic management could infringe on workers’ rights to engage in protected activity like lobbying for improved conditions.

About one in five Americans is bound by a noncompete agreement, though the number is much higher in some industries like health care where as many as 45% of workers have such agreements.

Amazon has filed numerous objections seeking to overturn a union’s victory in a 2022 election at its Staten Island, New York, warehouse, including arguing that Abruzzo’s office inappropriately influenced workers thereby suing to try to get a fired activist reinstated.

Abruzzo’s office has also issued over 100 complaints against Starbucks alleging numerous violations of federal law, including illegally shutting down unionized cafes and refusing to fairly negotiate at locations across the country.