Owner Elon Musk said it was a difficult decision to reduce Tesla's global headcount
Tesla will lay off more than 10% of its global electric vehicle workforce.
In a memo, first reported by news website Electrek, billionaire owner Elon Musk told staff there was nothing he hated more, "But it must be done".
Tesla did not immediately respond to the BBC's request for comment.
A Tesla employee who had been told he was being let go told the BBC he had subsequently been locked out of his emails as had all other staff being laid off.
The company is set to report its quarterly earnings later this month but has already reported a decline in vehicle deliveries in the first quarter, its first in nearly four years and also below market expectations.
Last month, Tesla reduced production at the Gigafactory in Shanghai and last week Tesla told employees who work on the Cybertruck that shifts will be shorter on the production line at the Austin.
Tesla has begun to feel the impact of slowing demand for electric vehicles.
Tesla shares were down 0.8% in premarket trading on Monday.
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