PHOTO BY SUNDRY PHOTOGRAPHY – STOCK.ADOBE.COM

Last week, the world’s richest man got on the phone with Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro. Reportedly, the Tesla and SpaceX CEO had some thoughts about investing in Pennsylvania.

You know what, buddy … we’re good, actually.

Does Pennsylvania need more investment, more jobs, more construction? You bet. But there are a few reasons why the residents of the Commonwealth should be wary of meddling by the outspoken mogul.

Outspoken, by the way, is a polite word you use when a person has repeatedly said hateful and divisive things. But we’re not here for a PR lesson — there would be no one to give it to, since Tesla eliminated its PR department rather than answer any questions.

Pennsylvania, particularly the Pittsburgh area, is union territory. This is where organized labor suffered through unspeakable tragedies before rising up and building the fair working conditions that created the American middle class. We need unions more than ever today, particularly as corporations find new and novel ways to take advantage of workers (and wages continue to rise too slowly, when they rise at all).

Musk, meanwhile, just joked about firing workers who threaten to strike, prompting unfair labor practice charges from the United Auto Workers. That union’s members, by the way, make 30% more on average than workers at Tesla, largely due to Musk’s thus-far successful efforts to dissuade his employees from joining a union — an effort which, at one point, included threatening to revoke stock options from workers who unionized.

That’s a crime, by the way.

At least most of the employees at Tesla still have jobs. When Musk bought Twitter, he fired four-fifths of the company’s workers and asked those that remained to work 20-hour days and sleep in the office.

If Pittsburgh, at least occasionally, is one of America’s most livable cities, 20-hour days will erode that standing in a hurry.

The threat of incoming Muskian investment does not merely affect those unfortunate enough to work for him, either. In Texas, where Musk has moved a considerable amount of his SpaceX operation, a national wildlife refuge is being poisoned (and could be taken over by the company), light and noise pollution have blanketed a community, access to public areas including a beach is frequently blocked by the company and equipment is stacked on land the company does not own.

When The Verge interviewed people who have worked at Tesla, employees reported “extremely long hours, unsafe working conditions, harassment, scandals, fines, lawsuits, and above all else, a fear that one false slip will lead to termination.” No amount of investment is worth that; frankly, no amount of progress is worth that. A car company is certainly not worth that.

So no, this isn’t the kind of investment Pennsylvania needs. We need good neighbors who will respect their workers, offer fair pay and create places where Pennsylvanians can grow and flourish, both inside and outside the office.

Elon Musk doesn’t know what that kind of company looks like.