Australian tech billionaire takes on Elon Musk's 'return to office' directive

FILE PHOTO: Elon Musk looks at his mobile phone in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S. January 19, 2020. REUTERS/Joe Skipper/File Photo

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Elon Musk got into a Twitter spat with Australia's third-richest man on Friday over the value of putting an end to the pandemic-era habit of remote working.

In an internal email this week, the Tesla Inc chief executive said "everyone at Tesla is required to spend a minimum of 40 hours in the office per week", and "if you don't show up, we will assume you have resigned". That drew criticism from worker advocates about potential exposure to the coronavirus.