Tesla’s head of human resources exits as staff upheaval spreads

Tesla Inc.’s top human resources executive, Allie Arebalo, has left the company, joining a handful of other senior leaders that have recently departed.

Arebalo is no longer with the company as of this week, according to two people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing private personnel information.

It’s not clear whether the HR executive, who reported directly to Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk, was let go as part of broader job cuts across Tesla or if she stepped down.

Musk and Arebalo did not immediately respond to Bloomberg’s requests for comment.

The electric-vehicle maker has been slashing jobs across the organization, targeting a staff reduction of about 20%, Bloomberg reported last month.

Some of Musk’s top lieutenants have also resigned in the past few weeks, including Senior Vice President Drew Baglino, one of only four named Tesla officers.

Musk has been fixated on cutting costs and staff since the company’s vehicle sales started to decline in recent months.

He also eliminated most of the company’s Supercharger team, which oversees partnerships with other automakers in the process of adopting Tesla’s charging connectors.

Arebalo was one of the most senior women at the company before her departure.

She had been in her role as human resources executive since February 2023 and had worked for Tesla for about six years, according to her LinkedIn profile.