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Background to the Conflict: In early October 2023, the union IF Metall expressed concern that TM Sweden AB, which handles Tesla in Sweden, did not intend to establish a collective agreement. This concern led to a strike at Tesla's workshops in Sweden that started on October 27. The aim of the strike was to push for collective agreements that would guarantee better working conditions, including wages, pensions and insurance for employees.
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Escalation of the Conflict: After the start of the strike, other unions such as Transport (Swedish Transport Workers' Union) and Fastighetsanställdas fackförbund took sympathy measures. These included blockades of four Swedish ports from November 7, with an extension to all Swedish ports planned from November 17. Other measures included blocking the cleaning of workshops and stopping the supply of electricity to Tesla's workshops and charging stations.
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Tesla's Response to the Blockade: Despite the port blockades, new Tesla cars continued to be delivered to Sweden. The company used transportation vehicles registered in other countries, such as Denmark, Poland, Lithuania, Germany and the Netherlands, to circumvent the blockade. It was reported that the number of cars delivered did not decrease compared to the time before the strike.
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International Cooperation: Transport tried to cooperate with unions in other Nordic countries to stop deliveries of Tesla cars to the Swedish market also from these countries. The Norwegian union Fellesförbundet considered taking action if Tesla started using Norwegian ports for deliveries to Sweden.
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Support for strikers: In order to strengthen the strike and encourage more people to join, the unions increased the "strike pay" to 130% of the normal wage for strikers, which is higher than the usual 80% compensation.
This situation illustrates the complex challenges that can arise in international business operations and the strategies that unions use to fight for workers' rights. Tesla's decision to continue supplying cars despite the blockade and the international dimension of the conflict is particularly noteworthy.