Tesla owner Elon Musk called Swedish postal workers’ decision to join an ongoing strike against the company “insane” as the carmaker attempts to stave off calls for unionization in the country.
The strike against the company began on October 27 with 130 mechanics protesting against a Tesla subsidiary that refused to recognize their labor union. On Monday, the Service and Communications Employees’ Union (Seko) announced that all mail and parcel delivery and collection to Tesla sites in the country would be halted. The postal workers’ strike prevents the Swedish Transport Agency from delivering license plates to Tesla vehicles as regulations prohibit delivery of the plates by any means other than post.
The strike by the mechanics has since spread to dock workers, who began blocking deliveries of Tesla cars to Swedish ports. Electricians have joined in and stopped conducting maintenance work on Teslas.
Cleaners and car painters also began refusing to work with Tesla vehicles. In total, nine unions are now part of the strike against Tesla.
The original strike by 130 mechanics was called by IF Metall, Sweden’s largest manufacturing union. “Basically, this is about good wages, good pensions, and good insurance for all our members who work at Tesla,” the union said on its website.
The workers “deserve decent and safe working conditions, just like everyone else on the Swedish labor market. We have been negotiating with Tesla for a long time. They have refused to sign a collective agreement and violate basic principles in the Swedish labor market. That is why we are now choosing to go on strike.”
In Sweden, terms between employers and workers are regulated by collective bargaining agreements, which cover wages, overtime pay, pensions, benefits, vacation, and other conditions of employment.
It is not mandatory for companies to sign collective agreements. However, entering into such agreements is seen as a convention in the country. Roughly 90 percent of Swedish employees are covered by collective agreements.
IF Metall plans to stop maintenance work at all Tesla sites across Sweden starting Nov. 28 if negotiations with the company do not resolve the dispute.
Tesla’s Faceoff With Unions
Tesla maintains a policy of not signing collective agreements, claiming that its workers already have good or better terms than what the Swedish unions are demanding.However, IF Metall disagrees with such claims, insisting that Tesla’s insurance coverage for workers “is not as good as what is in the collective agreement.” In addition, the company also does “not pay as much into the pension.”
“Wages are lower than the average in the Motor Industry Agreement. Without a collective agreement, annual wage increases are not guaranteed,” it said. “They also do not have reduced working hours.”
While the strike is ongoing, some union members who work for Tesla have refused to join it. IF Metall has also admitted that Tesla has found a way around the strike, appearing to be hiring other mechanics to staff its facilities, according to The New York Times. The company is bringing new vehicles into Sweden through trucks.
Sweden is one of the largest markets for Tesla cars in the European Union after France, Germany, and the Netherlands. Almost 39 percent of all new cars sold in Sweden are fully electric, which is a very high rate of EV adoption.
As such, Mr. Musk is not in a position to allow strikes to affect one of its key markets. However, giving in to the workers’ demands could have massive implications as the company has long been steadfast in not allowing workforce unionization.
Signing a collective agreement could embolden unions across the world to push forward their unionization plans at Tesla as well.
Speaking to Swedish business daily Dagens Industri on Tuesday, the chief mediator between Tesla and the workers said that the company’s Swedish subsidiary has “zero maneuvering room” to sign any contract with the unions and that it is on “orders straight from Elon Musk.”
The Swedish strike came as unions were stirring up in Germany, where Tesla has a large manufacturing plant that produces battery cells and EVs.
In the company’s gigafactory outside Berlin, union leaders have been attempting to organize the roughly 11,500 workers employed at the facility. In October, hundreds of workers from the factory had worn union stickers calling for fair pay and safe work.
“Tesla requires employees who have been sick frequently to release their doctor from the obligation of confidentiality. Otherwise, there are no wages. And those who are sick too often are thrown out more quickly,” it said.
