Tesla sues Sweden over postal strike

The electric carmaker has asked the courts to impose a fine of $96,000 if Sweden fails to ensure license plates for new cars. Organized labor is not only hurting Musk’s business in Sweden, but also in Germany.

New Tesla cars are unlikely to hit Swedish roads until the action is resolved

Tesla on Monday filed a lawsuit against the Swedish state over a postal workers strike that is hindering deliveries of license plates for the electric carmaker’s new vehicles.

The Texas-based automaker is already trying to fend off strike action on several fronts in the Scandinavian country over its refusal to agree to a collective wage agreement for Tesla mechanics.

Last week, postal workers initiated action by blocking deliveries to Tesla offices and repair shops.

As Swedish license plates for new cars are only delivered by mail, the blockade threatens to stop any new Teslas being used in the country for the foreseeable future, a move CEO Elon Musk branded “insane.”

Tesla alleges ‘an unlawful discriminatory attack’

Tesla said it was suing “the Swedish state through the Swedish Transport Agency” because not accessing the registration plates “constitutes an unlawful discriminatory attack directed at Tesla.”

The 52-year-old South Africa-born US citizen has resisted calls to allow the firm’s 127,000 employees around the world to unionize.

However, collective agreements with unions are the basis of the Swedish labor market, covering almost 90% of the country’s workforce, safeguarding their salaries as well as working conditions.

Musk also faces union woes in Germany

Elsewhere in Europe, Musk’s anti-union efforts haven’t stopped Tesla workers at its Brandenburg plant in Germany from joining the IG Metall union in rising numbers amid concerns around health, safety and overwork.

In October, more than 1,000 Tesla employees demanded better working conditions in a first-time action at the factory in Grünheide, which is in the Municipality of Brandenburg just outside Berlin, according to IG Metall.

jsi/wd (AP, AFP, Reuters)