Strike Led by Metalworkers' Union... Transport Workers' Union Also Announces Support
Focus on Management-Union Negotiations on the 6th
As mechanics working at Tesla's Sweden service center have launched a large-scale strike, attention is focused on whether there will be changes to Elon Musk's labor policy, which has emphasized a 'union-free management' principle. In particular, since the strike occurred amid efforts by the United Auto Workers (UAW) in the United States to establish a union at Tesla, the progress of negotiations is expected to have a significant impact going forward.
According to the New York Times (NYT), Wired, and others on the 5th (local time), the Swedish Metalworkers' Union (IF Metall) declared a strike against Tesla on the 27th of last month. As a result, dozens of union members affiliated with Tesla participated in the strike and refused to go to work, disrupting the operation of Tesla service centers.
The Tesla employees participating in this strike are mechanics working at Tesla product repair shops. The Metalworkers' Union is demanding that Tesla adopt a collective agreement covering about 120 mechanics regarding wages and working conditions. In Sweden, about 90% of all workers are covered by collective agreements.
The reason the Swedish Metalworkers' Union resorted to striking during negotiations is that Tesla management has refused to conclude the collective agreement that the union has been demanding for several years.
Jesper Peterson, spokesperson for the Swedish Metalworkers' Union, said, "Tesla employees basically want to receive the same benefits as everyone else working in the Swedish labor market," adding, "I cannot find any reason why Tesla should operate under different rules alone." He also acknowledged some media reports that not all union members participated and that some service facilities were not significantly affected by the strike, but emphasized the significance of the current strike by saying, "Striking is not an easy thing to do."
There are no Tesla manufacturing facilities in Sweden. Compared to other countries such as the United States or Germany, the market size is not very large. However, with electric vehicle sales increasing in the Nordic region, Sweden's electric vehicle market share is 32%, ranking third in the world after Norway and Iceland. Tesla's Model Y, produced in Germany, was also the best-selling electric vehicle in Sweden this year.
The Swedish Metalworkers' Union and Tesla management are scheduled to hold a meeting on the 6th to resume negotiations regarding the conclusion of a collective agreement.
The reason Tesla management has returned to the negotiating table appears to be that the Swedish Transport Workers' Union has declared it will engage in a solidarity strike. In Sweden, where 7 out of 10 workers belong to unions and union activities are actively supported, solidarity strikes between unions are legally permitted.
Accordingly, the Swedish Transport Workers' Union declared that from 12 PM on the 7th, it will stop unloading Tesla-related ships at four domestic ports to support the Metalworkers' Union strike. This means that Tesla vehicles arriving at the ports will not be unloaded. Nomi Lees, chairperson of the Transport Workers' Union, said, "No Tesla ship will be allowed to enter Sweden." If this happens, Tesla will inevitably face disruptions not only in operating service centers but also in sales in Sweden.
This strike is attracting attention because there is speculation that Tesla CEO Elon Musk's long-held principle of union-free management could be shaken. CEO Musk has repeatedly voiced critical opinions about unions in public and has also caused harm to employees attempting to establish unions.
In this situation, the UAW, which last month conducted the first-ever simultaneous strike against the three major U.S. automakers?Ford, Stellantis, and General Motors (GM)?and eventually reached an agreement, is now pushing to establish a union at Tesla's Fremont plant in California.
Moreover, there is also interest in establishing a union within Tesla in Germany. Christian Werner, chairperson of the German Metalworkers' Union, warned CEO Musk at a public event last month not to obstruct efforts to establish a union at Tesla's Berlin factory, saying, "Be careful. The rules of the game are different here."
German Bender, a labor market analyst at the Stockholm-based think tank Arena, evaluated, "It can be seen that this small conflict occurring in Sweden at Tesla carries the risk of spreading to other markets."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
