Faraday Future Founder Resigns As Employees Begin To Be Furloughed

The future of Faraday Future is becoming dimmer. The Verge reported yesterday that the automaker has decided to shut down some operations this week at their headquarters in Gardena, California, and at its factory in Hanford, California. Workers who started after May 1st of this year “must take a furlough,” according to an email sent by FF CEO Jia Yueting. Those working before "will have the option to remain on board with a reduced salary of $50,000 per year," employees told The Verge. Yueting said the furlough will last at least through December, and is dependent on finding new funding.

“We are grateful to all of the hundreds of employees who are willing to stay with the minimum wage [sic] and continue to work on the FF91 core project. This was an extremely tough decision to make, and we recognize the emotional stress and financial strain this puts on people’s personal lives.”

In addition, Nick Sampson, one of Faraday Future’s three co-founders resigned yesterday. This follows the departure of Peter Savagian, former chief engineer of GM's EV1 and Faraday Future's senior vice president of technology and product development.

“The company is effectively insolvent in both its financial and personnel assets, it will at best will [sic] limp along for the foreseeable future. I feel that my role in Faraday Future is no long [sic] a path that I can follow, so I will leave the company, effective immediately. I cannot continue knowing the devestating [sic] impact we are having on the lives of our employees, their families and loved ones as we as the [sic] ripple effect this will have on lives throughout our suppliers and the industry as a whole,” Sampson wrote in an email obtained by The Verge.

 “I have tried as best as I know how to find solutions to the problems but have met insurmountable barriers that I have not been able to resolve. I am sorry and sad that this day has been reached but I must do what my heart tells me.”

Sampson added in his email that “if circumstances should materially change, I certainly would consider returning to the company.”

A Faraday Future spokesman confirmed the departures of Sampson and Savagian in an email.

Last week, Faraday Future announced that it would staff salaries by 20 percent and layoff a number of workers in an effort to save some money. Good news would come later in the week as an independent arbitrator allowed Faraday Future to look for funding without getting approval from its main investor Evergrande Health.

Source: The Verge
Pic Credit: Faraday Future