Elon Musk says free employee lunches at Twitter HQ were costing $400 a meal

Elon Musk has defended his plans to scrap free meals for Twitter employees, claiming it was costing $400 (£340) a meal.

It's safe to say the Tesla founder hasn't had the smoothest transition since taking over the social media platform in a $44 billion (£37bn) deal.

Many users have expressed concern about how his focus on free speech could lead to extremist views being promoted on the site.

Then there's the whole blue tick subscription plan, which was set to allow users to pay $8 a month to buy verification, a move that proved controversial in itself.

But the option was swiftly removed after users started buying the blue ticks and pretending to be accounts for big businesses like BP and Tesla, as well as George W. Bush, and even Musk himself.

In short, he's got a lot on his plate right now – he even said so himself. But the same can't be said for Twitter's workforce, who are set to get their free meals snatched from them.

In response to criticism over plans to start making employees pay for their lunch, Musk said: "Especially bizarre given that almost no one came to the office. Estimated cost per lunch served in past 12 months is >$400."

Former Twitter employee Tracy Hawkins has since responded to Musk's claims, and it's safe to say she disagrees with his estimations.

Twitter

She wrote: "This is a lie. I ran this program up until a week ago when I resigned because I didn’t want to work for @elonmusk.

"For breakfast & lunch we spent $20-$25 a day per person. This enabled employees to work thru lunchtime & mtgs. Attendance was anything from 20-50% in the offices."

Of course Musk clapped back, writing: "False. Twitter spends $13M/year on food service for SF HQ. Badge in records show peak occupancy was 25%, average occupancy below 10%.

"There are more people preparing breakfast than eating breakfast. They don’t even bother serving dinner, because there is no one in the building."

Twitter

The back and forth has sparked a heated debate in the comments section, with Musk supporters suggesting Twitter employees are 'entitled' for wanting free meals.

"In most businesses employees buy their own lunches and work a full shift," wrote one user. "Just how lazy and entitled are these staff."

On the other side of the fence, people are suggesting it's yet another cash grab while pointing out that the SpaceX founder previously suggested he'd turn the HQ into a homeless shelter.

As said by one: "What were they doing with all the wasted food every day Elon? Presumably giving it to homeless shelters and like, right?"

Apex MediaWire/Alamy Stock Photo

Another wrote: "Hmmm...who's word should we take? A former employee with nothing to gain - and plenty to risk - by speaking out again the richest man on Earth?

"OR The richest man on Earth... whose history of erratic behaviour has created serious credibility issues?"

UNILAD has contacted Twitter for comment.