Many Twitter staffers depart from meeting as Elon Musk continued to speak: Report

The social media company appeared to be in chaos under its new owner, Elon Musk after numerous employee seemed to have departed following a deadline set by the new CEO. The company sent messages indicating that its 'office buildings' would be closed for the next few days.

According to reports, after Musk gave employees until 5:00 pm on Thursday to decide whether to leave or stay at Twitter, "hundreds of Twitter employees appeared to have chosen to depart with three months of severance money." Twitter also announced via email that 'our office buildings' would be closed and employee badge access would be disabled until Monday.

Between all this, Musk and his advisers spoke with many 'important' employees to prevent them from quitting their job. Musk's statement about the company's remote work policy was similarly unclear.

Musk's team reportedly spoke with 'undecided employees' who are integral to Twitter's operations in an attempt to encourage them to stay.

Following the report, "In his pitch, Musk underlined that he knows how to win and that anyone who wants to win should join him."

"Some employees were invited to the meeting in a conference room at the San Francisco office, while others joined via videoconference. As the 5 pm deadline approached, some of those who had called in began to hang up, evidently deciding to depart, even as Musk continued to talk," it added. 

Musk has repeatedly been sacking employees who oppose or disagree with him in recent weeks through public tweets.

He has informed employees that they have to work 'very hardcore' for the company to succeed, and he has given Twitter's remaining employees only roughly 36 hours to leave or commit to producing a 'breakthrough Twitter 2.0.' The unravelling at Twitter occurred weeks after Musk acquired the social media company for USD 44 billion last month and laid off half of Twitter's 7,500 full-time employees, including over 200 in India.

On Wednesday, Twitter employees were given a FAQ sheet about exit packages after Musk asked them if they wanted to stay with the company or leave. The FAQ said Musk's ultimatum was an 'official company communication' and 'not a phishing attempt.' "As you can see, Twitter is only getting started on an exciting adventure," the document read. 

Employees would be required to 'maximise working from an office' and 'work the hours necessary to execute your job at the greatest level, including early mornings, late evenings, and weekends,' according to the FAQ.

Musk also sent confusing messages about Twitter's remote work policy, initially saying that all Twitter employees must work at least 40 hours per week in the office and then announcing that 'regarding remote work, all that is required for approval is that your manager takes responsibility for ensuring that you are making an excellent contribution.'

Furthermore, Musk Wrote another email to staff warning 'supervisors were on the hook not to use strong work as a cover for people to work from home.' 'Any manager who asserts that someone reporting to them is doing outstanding work or that a given function, whether remote or not, is crucial, will be fired,' Musk said. 

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