Tesla is ramping up its workforce at Giga Berlin

As Tesla continues to gradually increase the cars it’s producing at the new Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg, the automaker has also needed to increase its workforce. A statement made by one minister shows just how significantly Tesla is doing so, with a handful of new hires coming in every month so far. 

Tesla is currently hiring as many as 500 to 600 people per month at its Giga Berlin factory, according to statements from Economic Minister of Brandenburg Joerg Steinbach, according to Reuters. The automaker is also working with Germany’s national employment agency to seek works that aren’t needed at other German automakers, according to Steinbach.

"The situation of carmakers in other regions realising that the production of electric cars requires less people than they had in the past is helping us, because we are trying to bring them here to Brandenburg," Steinbach said in a statement at a conference earlier this month.

So far, Steinbach says Tesla has recruited between 4,100 and 4,500 new employees, made up by around 10 percent immigrants, primarily from Poland. The factory, located in Grünheide, Germany in Brandenburg, has been running two work shifts since May 23, and Tesla may be looking to add a third shift by the end of this year.

The news comes just weeks after Tesla CEO Elon Musk cautioned investors about the trajectory of the U.S. economy, and announced plans to reduce salaried headcount by as much as 10 percent. Simultaneously, while Tesla reduces the number of salary workers, Musk added on Twitter afterward that the automaker plans to increase hourly workers, including those working on the factory floor building cars.

Tesla’s Giga Berlin is currently producing around 1,000 cars per week, sometimes more, in a display of how far the facility has come since first delivering vehicles in March. Tesla is also looking to expand the factory by about 100 hectares, which the automaker plans to use for a freight station and additional storage. The Berlin factory is currently one of the largest commercial properties throughout Brandenburg, measuring around 300 hectares prior to the expansion.

As Tesla continues to increase its operations at Giga Berlin, German automakers will continue to face increased competition from the electric vehicle powerhouse. And with a third manufacturing shift yet to be established at Giga Berlin, the automaker is well poised to challenge the barely burgeoning electric lineups from companies such as Volkswagen and Daimler in the coming years.

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