Haraldur Thorleifsson, who goes by the nickname “Halli,” was drawn into a war of words with Musk after he asked about his employment status.
Thorleifsson had been locked out of his work computer and failed to receive a response from Twitter’s human resources department on whether he had been fired. Musk replied by questioning Thorleifsson’s work performance, leading to a back-and-forth that ended with Musk criticizing Thorleifsson and suggesting he was not doing any work for the company.
After a Twitter user defended Thorleifsson’s work ethic, Musk gave him a video call and apologized for the “misunderstanding.” He said his attacks on Thorleifsson were based on things he was told that were untrue or not meaningful.
He also suggested that Thorleifsson was considering remaining at Twitter. Thorleifsson and Twitter did not respond to questions from CNBC on the spat.
Thorleifsson is a disabled Icelandic entrepreneur who lives and works in Reykjavik with his wife and two children. He said he had saved the company $500,000 on a software-as-a-service contract and led the prioritization of design projects.
Musk responded with two laughing face emojis and later tweeted a link to a clip from “Office Space,” where an employee is asked, “What would you say you do here?”
The incident raises questions about effective internal communications in companies, particularly in the tech industry, where layoffs are increasing, and remote work is becoming more commonplace. Matt Monette, U.K. and Ireland country lead at human resources platform Deel, said employers must abide by the rules in different countries.
“If an employee is having to ask their boss via Twitter if they still have a job or not, something has clearly gone pretty wrong,” he told CNBC.
Musk purchased Twitter last year for $44 billion and has sought to cut costs dramatically to make it a profitable venture. As part of that strategy, he has laid off thousands of Twitter employees. The company cut another 200 jobs last month, reducing its total staff count to 2,000 from roughly 7,500 in October.
The incident involving Thorleifsson is one of the most bizarre developments surrounding Musk’s purchase of Twitter. The Twitter CEO has been an avid user of the social media site, using it to promote Tesla and SpaceX and to attack his critics.
His attacks on Thorleifsson drew criticism from Billy Markus, co-creator of dogecoin and an ally of Musk. After Markus disapproved of Musk’s tweets, Musk said, “He’s the worst, sorry.”
Musk’s apology to Thorleifsson may help to defuse the situation, but it is unlikely to resolve the underlying issues. The incident highlights the challenges of managing a remote workforce and the need for effective internal communications.
It also raises questions about the responsibilities of employers in the tech industry, particularly when it comes to accommodating employees with disabilities. Ultimately, the incident may serve as a cautionary tale for other tech companies navigating the complex terrain of remote work and employee management.