SpaceX has fired employees that criticised Elon Musk’s public behaviour. 

The company says it had to sack employees who were behind a letter that criticised the outspoken billionaire's public behaviour. 

The employees sought signatures to show support for their letter and participation in a survey, according to SpaceX chief operating officer Gwynne Shotwell.

Mr Musk is often seen on the social media network Twitter making provocative, unfiltered and sometimes crude comments.

The workers' letter reportedly criticised Mr Musk's behaviour in public, and raisedt accusations of sexual harassment against him, labelling him “a frequent source of distraction and embarrassment for us”.

“As our CEO and most prominent spokesperson, Elon is seen as the face of SpaceX — every Tweet that Elon sends is a de facto public statement by the company,” the letter said.

Ms Shotwell said some workers felt “uncomfortable, intimidated and bullied, and/or angry because the letter pressured them to sign onto something that did not reflect their views”. 

“We have too much critical work to accomplish and no need for this kind of overreaching activism,” she added.