Current: Union calls off strike against Tesla in Sweden after three years with no results
Image: IF Metall (Tesla’s service center in Sweden)
It was a matter of principle for both sides: The Swedish union IF Metall was determined to prevent Tesla from operating in their country without a collective bargaining agreement, while the company did not want any union to interfere in its operations anywhere in the world. As a result, a strike against Tesla began in Sweden in October 2023, during which IF Metall received significant support and employed various tactics. But now it has given up: The nearly three-year-long labor conflict will end due to a lack of remaining participants.
Tesla strikers “bought off”
This is stated in a statement from the trade union organization IndustriAll, which includes an official position from IF Metall. According to it, the union has decided to “end all industrial actions against Tesla’s operations in Sweden.” The reason for this decision is simple: Tesla has “bought out” all the striking members. Without representation within the company, their own actions can no longer have any effect.
The exact meaning of “herausgekauft” (bought out) is not clear from IF Metall’s statement. However, this phrase is used several times and could imply that Tesla offered severance packages to the unionized workers, which they did not reject. The union states it fully understands why members would accept such buy-out offers after a strike that lasted so long.
Musk rejects union influence
The statement continues that Tesla systematically employed scabs and invested enormous financial resources to undermine the strike. Rather than providing workers with safety and influence through a collective contract, the company ultimately decided to buy out union members. Otherwise, IF Metall thanks workers around the world who have supported it and says it will continue its fight for wage contracts.
She did not provide details on the alleged buy-out amounts, and as usual, Tesla itself issued no statement at the end of the strike in Sweden. The price remains unknown, but CEO Elon Musk has once again clearly prevailed in his rejection of union influence. He once warned workers in Fremont, USA, that unions could cause them to lose their options on Tesla shares, a statement that was later banned by court order.
Battle over Tesla’s German Factory
In Germany, Musk also personally intervened successfully to prevent IG Metall from gaining a majority on the board of directors at the Gigafactory in Grünheide. Indirectly, he threatened ahead of the March election to halt investments in Germany’s Tesla factory if the union succeeded. His local plant manager, Andre Thierig, accused a IG Metall representative of secretly recording a meeting. The police found no evidence to support this claim, and Thierig himself was charged with defamation.