The ongoing strike against Tesla in Sweden its seventh month. While Tesla has held strong in their position, the union IF Metall union has blinked again, allowing third party repair shops to resume work on Tesla vehicles.
According to a report from local publication Allt Om Elbil, Tesla-certified repair facilities will be allowed to resume work on Tesla vehicles starting today, May 1, 2024. While it is another concession, there will be certain exceptions.
The union says that repairs will still be prohibited on vehicles owned by Tesla, those with transport damage, and cars under factory warranty.
The easing of restrictions will now include repairs on crash-damaged vehicles, significantly reducing the backlog of work at about 80 affected damage and body shops.
Earlier this year IF Metall made the first concession in the ongoing strike, temporarily allowing cars to be repaired at third-party shops. This exemption expired just before the announcement allowing Tesla-certified repair shops to resume work today.
The decision to relax the strike actions comes more than six months after the strike began in October last year. Through the strike IF Metall imposed strict blockades on repairs as part of its broader strategy to pressure Tesla into signing a collective bargaining agreement. Such agreements are commonplace in Sweden, and the union has expressed frustration over Tesla’s reluctance to join the ranks of companies that have adopted these labour standards.
The strike has extended beyond Sweden’s borders and outside of IF Metall, with other unions in neighbouring countries imposing sympathy strikes, such as those in Norway and Denmark.
