Tesla seems to have made great strides since the days when it defied COVID-19 safety rules. Wall Street Journal sources say that Tesla will require all employees at its Nevada Gigafactory, regardless of vaccination status, to wear masks beginning August 9th. The battery plant's employees used to only need to wear masks if their vaccination status was not complete.According to tipsters, Tesla is tightening its policy following the highly transmissible Delta variant SARS-CoV-2. This includes updated CDC guidance that recommends that vaccinated persons wear masks indoors. While full vaccinations can reduce the risk of infection and symptoms, evidence shows that breakthrough cases (those people who are infected but have not been vaccinated) can easily transmit the virus to others.Although the company has not responded to comments requests, it isn't expected to when it quietly disbanded it public relations team in autumn 2020.Tesla is slightly slower than its Detroit-based rivals, who reinstated mask mandates one week earlier. It's still a stark contrast to Tesla's May 2020 attitude, when it defied an Alameda County lockdown, and kept its Fremont car factory open. Elon Musk threatened to sue the county and move Tesla's headquarters from California. Musk claimed that he contracted COVID-19 in November 2019 after the Fremont plant was moved.Tesla can be more flexible when its factory is open. It makes it easier to comply. Tesla can't afford patience testing officials when it struggles to keep up with demand. The mask order reported by Tesla is a stark contrast to Tesla's past attitude that it's willing to act rather than fighting back.
