The Verge has gotten ahold of a purported open letter from "a spectra" of SpaceX employees to company President Gwynne Shotwell, who recently defended CEO Elon Musk from harassment claims, complaining about CEO Elon Musk. In the letter, the employees would apparently like SpaceX to make it clear to the world, and potential new hires, that the values of the man who owns 40-50% of SpaceX and serves as its CEO are not representative of SpaceX.
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The letter, reviewed by The Verge, describes how Musk's actions and the recent allegations of sexual harassment against him are negatively affecting SpaceX's reputation. The document claims that employees "across the spectra of gender, ethnicity, seniority, and technical roles have collaborated on" writing the letter. It's not known which SpaceX employees wrote the letter; the employees who posted the letter in the internal chat system have not responded to requests for comment.
"Elon's behavior in the public sphere is a frequent source of distraction and embarrassment for us, particularly in recent weeks," the letter states. "As our CEO and most prominent spokesperson, Elon is seen as the face of SpaceX — every Tweet that Elon sends is a de facto public statement by the company. It is critical to make clear to our teams and to our potential talent pool that his messaging does not reflect our work, our mission, or our values."
