Tesla is reportedly shutting down Model S and X production for 18 days, forcing staff to take unplanned, unpaid time off - or they can 'volunteer' in other parts of the business

• Tesla plans to suspend production of its Model S and Model X electric vehicles for 18 days starting December 24, according to a Friday staff email seen by CNBC.
• Affected workers have to take five unpaid days off work, but Tesla said they could seek limited paid opportunities or even "volunteer" elsewhere in the business.
• That same day, CEO Elon Musk emailed workers urging them to ramp up production of the vehicles because of high demand.

Tesla plans to suspend production of its Model S and Model X electric vehicles for 18 days starting in late December, according to an email to factory workers seen by CNBC.

This has forced workers to take unpaid and unplanned time off work - and Tesla has said they can "volunteer" in other areas of the business, CNBC reported.

Production at Tesla's Fremont, California, factory will cease December 24 and resume January 11, according to an email seen by CNBC.

Affected workers will be given a full week of pay for the compulsory time off, per the email sent Friday, alongside some paid holiday days.

But this leaves five days that workers will have to take off work unpaid.

In the email, Tesla management said there would be "limited paid opportunities" for staff members to work in other parts of the company during this time. Otherwise, workers can "volunteer" in the deliveries, or sales, side of the business, it said, per CNBC.

"The SX lines will be shut down for the holidays starting Dec. 24th and returning Jan. 11th," Tesla said in the email, transcribed in full by CNBC.

"We would like you to take the opportunity to refresh or spend time with your family, so Tesla will be giving you a full week pay for the week of Jan. 4th," it continued.

"There will also be limited paid opportunities for you to support other shops or volunteer for deliveries during some of this time."

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Read more: Elon Musk's move to Texas is a publicity stunt that reveals how Tesla is maturing as an automaker

In a separate email to workers, also Friday, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said demand was "quite a bit higher than production this quarter" as he urged employees to ramp up production as much as possible for the rest of 2020, per CNBC.

Sales of Tesla's Model S and Model X vehicles totaled 15,200 in the quarter that ended in late September, compared with 124,100 for its Model 3 and Model Y vehicles.

News of the temporary shutdown follows a string of problems with both vehicles for the automaker.

In late November, Tesla recalled more than 9,000 Model X cars over a cosmetic adhesive that could fly off. This was after it recalled 15,000 Model X vehicles over power-steering issues and 30,000 Model S and Model X cars over suspension problems in October.

Do you work at Tesla's Fremont factory and have a tip you want to share? Contact Grace Dean via email (gdean@businessinsider.com). Always use a non-work email.