After announcing this week that it furloughed 82 employees, EV startup Canoo emailed remaining workers to inform them they were being placed on a “mandatory unpaid break” and would be locked out of the company’s systems at the end of the day Friday, TechCrunch reports. The email viewed by TechCrunch reportedly said the break would last at least through the end of the year. Canoo announced on Wednesday that it was idling its Oklahoma factories “while it works to finalize securing the capital necessary to move forward with its operations.”

Canoo has faced financial difficulties, lawsuits and the departure of multiple executives over the last year. It previously announced it was furloughing 30 employees just this fall. Canoo’s announcement on Wednesday said that the company is now in “advanced discussions with various capital sources.” In a statement about the cuts, Canoo said, “We regret having to furlough our employees, especially during the holidays, but we have no choice at this point. We are hopeful that we will be able to bring them back to work soon.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/canoo-put-employees-on-a-mandatory-unpaid-break-after-pausing-work-at-oklahoma-factories-this-week-221912555.html?src=rss

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