Twitter on Thursday announced it was temporarily closing its offices after Elon Musk issued employees an ultimatum: Stay with the company `working long hours at high intensity' or quit with three months' severance pay. The closure until Monday came after more workers than anticipated opted for the second option, according to people familiar with the situation, causing uncertainty over who should still be allowed access to Twitter premises. It's a fresh blow for Musk, who laid off half the company's workforce upon taking over, before having to ask some of them to return in order to build the platform he envisaged. As Twitter's internal communication channels filled with staff announcing their departure, Musk softened his earlier edict against working remotely. "All that is required for approval is that your manager takes responsibility for ensuring that you are making an excellent contribution”, he wrote in an email Thursday.

Topics related to the company trended in the US after the news including #RIPTwitter, Twitter HQ, Apparently

Twitter, and $44 billion, which was the price Musk paid for the social network business. While it's not clear how many of Twitter's already decimated staff took Musk up on his offer, the newest round of departures means the platform is continuing to lose workers just at it is gearing up for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, one of the busiest events on Twitter that can overwhelm its systems if things go haywire. Since taking over Twitter less than three weeks ago, Musk has booted half of the company's full time staff of 7,500 and an untold number of contractors responsible for content moderation and other crucial efforts. He fired top executives on his first day as Twitter's owner, while others left voluntarily in the ensuing days. Earlier this week, he began firing a small group of engineers who took issue with him publicly or in the company's internal Slack messaging system.

Since Taking Over Twitter Less Than Three Weeks Ago, Musk Has Booted Half Of The Company's Full Time Staff Of 7,500 & An Untold Number Of Contractors Responsible For Content Moderation & Other Crucial Efforts

Below is the memo the company sent out to staff announcing the office closure:

Hi, Effective immediately, we are temporarily closing our office buildings and all badge access will be suspended. Offices will reopen on Monday, November 21st.