Tesla’s
labor dispute in Europe won’t be ending anytime soon, in fact it’s only intensifying and widening.
The electric-vehicle maker is looking to hire a public policy expert to work in the Nordics region–defined as Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland. It’s a sign that the company may be expecting a long battle with unions in the region.
“The role is to help ensure that the political, regulatory and fiscal framework in the ‘Nordics’ support
Tesla’s
mission,” according to the job advertisement on Tesla’s website. The company is looking for someone with a proven track record of getting regulatory changes made in the Nordics.
It looks like they will also need to be a skilled union negotiator to prevent the dispute from escalating further.
The dispute began with Swedish mechanics–over their right to engage in collective negotiating–but has swelled as more unions have joined in sympathy strikes. Danish, Norwegian, Finnish and Swedish dockworkers have all joined in, refusing to unload or transport cars made by Tesla for Swedish customers. Swedish postal workers have refused to deliver license plates to Tesla, a move the EV maker unsuccessfully challenged in court.
The Swedish Transport Workers’ Union said Wednesday it will stop collecting waste from Tesla workshops to support the striking mechanics. It described the action as a blockade, rather than a strike.
“This type of cross-border action is very unusual and the fact that it has now been taken shows why our labor market model cannot be ignored,” the union’s chairman Tommy Wreeth said.
Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.
Sweden is a relatively small market for Tesla, and the dispute has yet to impact the stock. The shares rose 1% in premarket trading, while
NIO
fell 0.5% and
XPeng
fell 2.3%.
However, the company will want to stop the labor action spreading further across Europe.
Elon Musk described the strikes as “insane” last month and has previously said he disagrees with the ideas of unions.
But Tesla’s problems in the region are escalating, and this time Musk may have bitten off more than he can chew.
Write to Callum Keown at [email protected]
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