Home HomeSwedenLivingWorld world_2_fill WorldBusiness BusinessSports sports-soccer SportsEntertainmentEntertain

Breakthrough - more strikes at Tesla

IF Metall has managed to attract more Tesla workers to its side in the prolonged strike. It's just over half of the employees who are now on strike, says LO union's agreement secretary Simon Petersson.

Published: 23 August 2024
Breakthrough - more strikes at Tesla
Photo: Johan Nilsson/TT

In October, it has been a year since IF Metall launched its strike against electric car giant Tesla's operations in Sweden. Shortly afterwards, large parts of the LO family's unions joined in sympathy actions, all to disrupt Tesla's operations.

The union's demands: Collective agreement. Tesla says no. And that's where they still stand, in completely locked positions, and from the outside, very little has happened.

IF Metall has had a hard time getting a comprehensive strike going. Otherwise, the American car giant would have been forced to give in a long time ago. Many, a clear majority, of the employees have rejected the union and therefore worked as usual.

Turning point in the summer

But now things have started to turn.

During the summer, we've seen a large influx of new members at Tesla's various facilities in Sweden. And that's been very positive, says Simon Petersson.

According to him, the number has increased by 20 percent to now 50 members.

That means we've reached over 50 percent, says Simon Petersson.

That more people are laying down their work increases the pressure on Tesla, Simon Petersson is convinced, even though the company continues to fly in personnel from abroad, something the union calls strike-breaking.

This increase in the number of members means an even greater pressure on TM Sweden's (Tesla in Sweden) facilities. It's more people on strike. It's getting harder to operate, he says.

Hard to determine

But, as said, nothing has happened yet. Tesla is still managing to get cars into Sweden by truck since the harbors were blocked by the unions in Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Denmark. It's hard to say whether the company's sales of new cars have been affected by the conflict. Tesla is maintaining its market share of electric cars in Sweden, on a market that has been generally declining over the past year.

Simon Petersson doesn't want to go into how much, how, and when he talks to TM Sweden's management to find a solution to the conflict. But it's not dead, he says.

In just over two months, the strike will have been going on for a year. Will you still be holding out then?

It's our hope that it won't. But then we'll have resolved these issues. But we're ready if it takes longer than a year.

How much is this costing Metall's strike fund?

We're just scraping the surface of it right now. So it's no problem at all, actually, says Simon Petersson.

IF Metall launched the strike against Tesla's service facilities in Sweden on October 27, 2023.

The union's demands are collective agreements for its members. Tesla says no.

Besides IF Metall's primary conflict, several other LO unions have launched sympathy strikes, which, among other things, mean that Transport and its sister organizations in neighboring countries have stopped all unloading of Tesla cars in harbors.

Pickup is blocked, service of charging stations and workshop equipment as well, as is the postal delivery of registration plates from the Transport Agency, to name a few of the industrial actions.

People
Organisations
TTT
By TTThis article has been altered and translated by Sweden Herald

More news

Source: The General Strike in the USA Called Off
1 MIN READ

Source: The General Strike in the USA Called Off

Oil Company Winners on the US Stock Exchange
1 MIN READ

Oil Company Winners on the US Stock Exchange

200 to Leave Northvolt in Stockholm and Västerås
2 MIN READ

200 to Leave Northvolt in Stockholm and Västerås

Opens for Eastern Link around Stockholm
2 MIN READ

Opens for Eastern Link around Stockholm

Swedavia: 90 laid off at Bromma
1 MIN READ

Swedavia: 90 laid off at Bromma

The Forestry Board Withdraws Notice of Termination
1 MIN READ

The Forestry Board Withdraws Notice of Termination

Action plan required - incorrect figures
1 MIN READ

Action plan required - incorrect figures

Nordea's problem solved
1 MIN READ

Nordea's problem solved

The Social Democrats want to finance more teachers in the classroom
1 MIN READ

The Social Democrats want to finance more teachers in the classroom

The Airline KLM Makes Billion Savings
1 MIN READ

The Airline KLM Makes Billion Savings

Stora Enso plans to sell Swedish forest
1 MIN READ

Stora Enso plans to sell Swedish forest

Swedish Service Sector Slows Down
1 MIN READ

Swedish Service Sector Slows Down

Farmer-owned company achieves new top result.
1 MIN READ

Farmer-owned company achieves new top result.

Open AI worth 1,600 billion kronor
1 MIN READ

Open AI worth 1,600 billion kronor

Bank shares weighed down the stock market
1 MIN READ

Bank shares weighed down the stock market

BMW does not want to invest more in Northvolt
1 MIN READ

BMW does not want to invest more in Northvolt

Swedavia: Foreign Travel Increases
1 MIN READ

Swedavia: Foreign Travel Increases

Reducing construction time for power grids by "getting a head start"
1 MIN READ

Reducing construction time for power grids by "getting a head start"

The Car Crisis is "Challenging" for Swedish Companies
2 MIN READ

The Car Crisis is "Challenging" for Swedish Companies

Setback in Hong Kong after rally
1 MIN READ

Setback in Hong Kong after rally