In a tight ruling, a U.S. appeals court on Friday backed Elon Musk’s right to keep an anti-union tweet posted in 2018, reversing a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) order demanding its removal. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, based in New Orleans, ruled 9-8 in favor of Musk, stating that the tweet is protected by the First Amendment as free speech, not a threat against unionizing Tesla employees.
The judges, appointed by Republican presidents, concluded that removing Musk’s comments on unionization would conflict with the nation’s traditional free speech protections, calling it “not a remedy traditionally countenanced by American law.” This decision overturns the NLRB’s previous stance that Musk’s post intimidated Tesla workers by suggesting they’d lose stock options if they unionized.
Judge James Dennis, writing for the dissenters, argued the ruling lacked strong legal and factual support, with all Democratic appointees aligning with his perspective. The court’s decision also questioned the NLRB’s prior order for Tesla to reinstate a pro-union employee, asking the board to review this directive.
The controversial tweet came amidst union efforts at Tesla’s Fremont, California plant, where Musk questioned the value of union dues in a tweet that read, “Nothing stopping Tesla team at our car plant from voting union… But why pay union dues & give up stock options for nothing?” Tesla maintained the tweet was simply Musk’s view on union dues, not a warning.
In a broader dispute, Musk’s aerospace company, SpaceX, has launched its own legal challenge against the NLRB, asserting the board’s in-house enforcement overreaches its legal boundaries.
