What did Elon Musk say about remote work? Tesla CEO sparks debate with controversial comments

American business magnate Elon Musk sparked debate online after he made some controversial comments about people working remotely. In a CNBC interview released on May 16, the 51-year-old personality slammed people who are working from home and called the practice &quot;morally wrong.&quot;While speaking to CNBC's David Faber, Musk referenced Tesla's factory and said that the &quot;laptop class is living in la la land.&quot; He added:Mike Sington@MikeSington“The laptop class is living in la-la land.” Elon Musk thinks remote work is “morally wrong”. (Video: CNBC)28857“The laptop class is living in la-la land.” Elon Musk thinks remote work is “morally wrong”. (Video: CNBC) https://t.co/pftjd4HHTZ“Are people working from home here? Of course not. The people [that are] building the cars, servicing the cars, building houses, fixing houses, or making the food, making all the things that people consume—it’s messed up to assume that they have to go to work but you don’t. [Why] is that? It’s not just a productivity thing. I think it’s morally wrong.”Elon Musk added:“I think that the whole notion of work from home is a bit like the fake Marie Antoinette quote, 'Let them eat cake.'″Musk added that he did not expect people to work seven days a week and that there are some exceptions to working remotely. He also stated that he believes that people should take vacations.Twitter reactions on Elon Musk's remote working being &quot;morally wrong&quot; comment View this post on Instagram Instagram PostAfter Elon Musk's comment on working remotely being &quot;morally wrong&quot; went viral, Twitterati was furious. Several users bashed the CEO of Twitter for not supporting his argument with facts and pointed out the advantages of working remotely.Others slammed Elon Musk for making the controversial comment stating that rich workers like him are not happy with employees working from home because then he can't &quot;exploit&quot; them.Elsa Ramon@ElsaRamonOnAir@MikeSington Wrong, @elonmusk Remote work opened up new possibilities and opportunities for #disabled people. It’s not an excuse to goof off or be lazy. For many, their livelihoods may depend on it. Your myopic take is hurtful to disabled people who just want to contribute their talents and… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…1414@MikeSington Wrong, @elonmusk Remote work opened up new possibilities and opportunities for #disabled people. It’s not an excuse to goof off or be lazy. For many, their livelihoods may depend on it. Your myopic take is hurtful to disabled people who just want to contribute their talents and… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…Screenshot of a Twitter user remarking on Musk's work-from-home comment. (Image via @RapTV/Twitter)Stomps@StaceyCeeJay@MikeSington Guy who bought a digital community complains about people remoting in from literally anywhere.941@MikeSington Guy who bought a digital community complains about people remoting in from literally anywhere.Screenshot of a Twitter user remarking on Musk's work-from-home comment. (Image via @RapTV/Twitter)Houston Ewton@TadEwton@MikeSington I think Elon needs to get some rest111@MikeSington I think Elon needs to get some restScreenshot of a Twitter user remarking on Musk's work-from-home comment. (Image via @RapTV/Twitter)Stig Hoeg Andersen@StigHoeg@MikeSington Same logic should dictate that all should work outside, since some are forced to work outside. Some are forced to stand up, so chairs shouldn't be allowed in work places - its a &quot;moral issue&quot;, no?42@MikeSington Same logic should dictate that all should work outside, since some are forced to work outside. Some are forced to stand up, so chairs shouldn't be allowed in work places - its a &quot;moral issue&quot;, no?Screenshot of a Twitter user remarking on Musk's work-from-home comment. (Image via @RapTV/Twitter)Happy Foster Pups Here@Mamaofthreebear@MikeSington @MsMariaT You know what was really great about lala land? I actually had no idea who Elon Musk was until he bought Twitter. And yet, my life in lala land was and remains absolutely fine--and my morals remain pretty intact.3@MikeSington @MsMariaT You know what was really great about lala land? I actually had no idea who Elon Musk was until he bought Twitter. And yet, my life in lala land was and remains absolutely fine--and my morals remain pretty intact.Screenshot of a Twitter user remarking on Musk's work-from-home comment. (Image via @RapTV/Twitter)Dawn@Dawn73Nigel@MikeSington My husband works remote, and has been working remote for 10 years, even before Covid. He's national, so there is no &quot;office&quot;, since he manages people from every state. How is it MORALLY wrong to not have an office by yourself managing people from across the country?3@MikeSington My husband works remote, and has been working remote for 10 years, even before Covid. He's national, so there is no &quot;office&quot;, since he manages people from every state. How is it MORALLY wrong to not have an office by yourself managing people from across the country?Elon Musk has had some strong opinions when it comes to working from home. Last year, after the 51-year-old took over the social media platform Twitter, he ended the company's &quot;work from home forever&quot; regime. He also asked everyone to come back to the office. The policy was implemented by the company's former CEO, Jack Dorsey.Elon Musk's remarks come at a time when the debate on the &quot;laptop class&quot; in Silicon Valley has gained momentum in recent years. Critics are alleging that the persistence of the remote working growth that arose during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a spread of &quot;fake work.&quot; View this post on Instagram Instagram PostIn 2022, Silicon Valley investor Marc Andreessen described the &quot;laptop class&quot; as a collection of: &quot;Western upper-middle-class professionals who work through a screen and are totally abstracted from tangible physical reality and the real-work consequences of their opinions and beliefs.&quot;He was not the only one to share these sentiments. PayPal investor Keith Rabois stated that in March 2023 that tech companies had gotten bloated with a slew of individuals lazing about performing laptop-based employment that amounted to nothing more than &quot;fake work.&quot;Many computer companies have admitted that they employed too many people during the coronavirus pandemic. This forced them to make substantial rounds of layoffs that had an effect on many laptop-based middle-manager jobs.

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