SpaceX takes legal action to avoid hearing from anti-Musk ex-employees

SpaceX on Thursday filed a complaint against the US labor inspectorate, the NLRB, to prevent former employees from hearing who say they were fired for criticizing boss Elon Musk.

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According to a copy of the complaint filed in Texas federal court, the aerospace company claims the federal agency's operation is unconstitutional and that the investigation process violates the group's right to a jury trial.

The complaint does not dispute the idea that the former employees were fired for asking their colleagues to sign a letter criticizing Elon Musk's behavior on social media.

“The open letter requested that SpaceX take certain steps to address the perceived deficiencies” and referred to the investigation, according to the court document. A small group of SpaceX employees used the company's internal communications platform to send an open letter to thousands of colleagues in June 2022.

In the letter, SpaceX employees asked the company's management to consider insulting and inappropriate comments on Twitter from the tempestuous manager – who was renamed X last summer – according to American media.

The fired employees subsequently filed complaints with the NLRB alleging that SpaceX violated labor laws. Eight of them will be questioned by the agency on March 5.

SpaceX has asked a federal court in Texas to stop the investigation and rule that the NLRB's structure violates the Constitution.