The idea is that Musk clearly doesn't judge performance and rather just fires haphazardly, as somewhat evidenced by the failed attempts to rehire various critic

The idea is that Musk clearly doesn't judge performance and rather just fires haphazardly, as somewhat evidenced by the failed attempts to rehire various critical staff. Firing them with much less severance than the "nonbelievers" he pushed out previously is a pointlessly cruel action. Over in the EU, it is quite clearly a set of societal obligations that he is violating, ones that are enshrined in law.