SHARE
COPY LINK

STRIKES

Norwegian union threatens solidarity action in Swedish Tesla strike

Norway's biggest private sector union is joining a Danish union in threatening solidarity action as part of a strike against Tesla in Sweden.

Norwegian union threatens solidarity action in Swedish Tesla strike
Swedish mechanics have been striking at Tesla since October. Photo: Ina Fassbender/AFP

Norway’s Fellesforbundet said it would block the transit of Tesla cars into Sweden if the US automaker refuses to sign a Swedish collective wage agreement by December 20th.

Since October 27th, some 130 mechanics at 10 Tesla repair shops in seven Swedish cities have been striking to protest against the carmaker’s refusal to sign a collective agreement.

The strike has since grown into a larger conflict between Tesla and almost a dozen unions seeking to protect Sweden’s labour model.

Despite this, several Swedish media have reported that the impact of the strikes has so far been fairly limited.

IF Metall has accused the electric carmaker of systematically using strike breakers to circumvent the labour action, and some Tesla deliveries to Sweden have been redirected through neighbouring Norwegian and Danish ports instead.

Negotiated sector by sector, collective agreements with unions are the basis of the Nordic labour market model, covering almost 90 percent of all employees in Sweden, and guaranteeing wages and working conditions.

Despite the fact that many of Tesla’s employees in Sweden are union members, they cannot benefit from the collective bargaining agreements unless Tesla signs on to them.

“If this is not in place by December 20th, we will go ahead and take action,” Norway’s Fellesforbundet union said, without disclosing what kind of measures it was planning.

“This is a clear message to Tesla that it will not be able to redirect Swedish Teslas to Norway,” he added.

Danish union 3F earlier this week said its transport workers would launch a strike in solidarity with Swedish Tesla workers on December 18th unless a solution was found.

According to the Swedish Transport Agency, there are 51,617 Teslas registered in Sweden.

Tesla chief executive Elon Musk has long rejected calls to allow the company’s 127,000 employees worldwide to unionise.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.
For members

STRIKES

Swedish healthcare strike: What nurses and midwives’ overtime ban means for you

A nationwide healthcare strike involving tens of thousands of Swedish nurses and midwives got under way on Thursday afternoon, after negotiations about salaries and rotas broke down.

Swedish healthcare strike: What nurses and midwives' overtime ban means for you

The industrial action, launched by the Swedish Association of Health Professionals, kicked off at 4pm on Thursday.

The union represents nurses, midwives, biomedical scientists and radiographers.

Up to 63,000 union members are affected by the strike, which means that they are to refuse to work overtime or extra shifts, and that employers may not hire new staff as long as the action is ongoing.

EXPLAINED:

Managers are exempt from the strike.

“We haven’t had any unreasonable expectations. We want to be able to have the energy to work full time, we want sustainable schedules and four weeks of continuous vacation in summer. We want higher wages so that it’s equal,” union chair Sineva Ribeiro said earlier this month.

“During the pandemic we were called superheroes and went to work on our days off to save lives. We were applauded then, but today we have to choose between falling ill ourselves or reducing our hours to part time to be able to cope. At the end of the day, patients take the hit,” she added.

She said the workers they represent in total worked 3 million hours in overtime last year.

But negotiations with SKR (the umbrella organisation for Swedish regions) and employer organisation Sobona have failed to bring the parties closer together. Late on Wednesday the union and SKR and Sobona again rejected each other’s proposals and counter proposals.

Healthcare services are generally urging patients to turn up to scheduled appointments (although as healthcare is managed on a regional basis in Sweden, it may make sense to check with your healthcare provider), but warn that surgeries may have to be cancelled.

“There’s a risk that we will have to reduce our capacity for planned surgeries and you will be informed if your surgery is affected,” Region Sörmland writes on its website.

“We prioritise emergencies and healthcare that cannot wait without risking life or long-term health,” Region Halland’s healthcare director Martin Engström writes in a statement.

Region Kronoberg and Blekinge meanwhile warn of longer waiting times for test results.

SHOW COMMENTS