Workers claim unpaid wages and unsafe conditions at Tesla buildout

Workers who helped build Tesla's Austin gigafactory are alleging wage and safety violations by their employers.

Driving the news: On Tuesday, workers filed a pair of complaints, one claiming employers involved with site construction violated federal minimum wage and overtime pay laws and another alleging falsified safety credentials.

Why it matters: The allegations shine a light on conditions for workers serving at the bottom of the tech pyramid.

Details: In the first letter, workers say they either did not receive any pay for work performed or were deprived of overtime pay.

• "Workers reported being promised a non-discretionary double pay bonus if they worked Thursday-Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend 2021 but did not receive this rate after sacrificing time with their families to build the Tesla Gigafactory," per a Tuesday letter from Hannah Alexander, a staff attorney with Austin-based Workers Defense Project, to Nicole Sellers, an Austin-based official with the U.S. Department of Labor.
• Alexander told Axios the complaints are based on claims from "a couple dozen" workers.

Meanwhile: On Tuesday, the Workers Defense Project also wrote to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration about alleged fake certificates of completion for required training that a worker named Victor says never took place.

What they're saying: Victor — whose last name has been withheld from the complaint — told the Guardian that his team was directed to work on the metal factory roof at night with no lights.

• Victor said he and his colleagues were also expected to continue work on a flooded first floor — despite observing wiring in the water. He told his wife, per the Guardian: "I'm going to die in this factory."

Worth noting: The complaints do not name the contractor and subcontractors who employed the workers.

• Alexander told Axios that the Workers Defense Project is keeping those details confidential so as not to hamper any potential federal investigation.
• Asked if Tesla itself was a direct employer, Alexander said: "They as the developer had a lot of power to ensure violations on the worksite did not occur."

The other side: Tesla officials did not respond Tuesday to an Axios interview request.

• In April, the factory celebrated its grand opening with a Cyber Rodeo. Musk, sporting a black cowboy hat, announced the plant "can fit 194 billion hamsters."

Flashback: In the fall of 2021, the Texas Anti-Poverty Project raised concerns with Tesla leadership over hiring practices at the company's new Austin gigafactory, urging the car manufacturer to improve opportunities for residents who speak only Spanish.