Tesla Employees Notified Company of Their Intent to Unionize, and Many Were Fired Shortly After UPDATED

Unlike many auto manufacturing jobs in America, Tesla’s employees are not unionized.  That could soon change, but not without some drama first. A group of Autopilot analysts in Buffalo, New York, recently notified CEO Elon Musk of their intent to organize, but the company responded by firing dozens of people, including many that were involved in the unionizing effort.

The terminations happened one day after the employees announced their intentions, and the union is calling foul. Workers United said Tesla illegally fired the workers “in retaliation for union activity and do discourage union activity.” 

The unionizing effort has several goals, including a more prominent role in the decision-making process at the plant and a reduction in the company’s monitoring processes. Employees’ time is tracked per task, and Tesla monitors their computer keystrokes, which the group says creates pressure that is harmful to their health. Some avoid taking bathroom breaks due to the granular time-tracking methods.

Retaliation against employees for unionizing is illegal under federal law, but they’ll have to prove the terminations were directly related to the union. Tesla cut hundreds of similar positions in California last year, so there’s a chance the two things are unrelated. The National Labor Relations Board’s regional office will investigate, and if there’s merit to the claims, the company can settle, or the case can go before a judge.

UPDATED: Tesla has laid out a response on its blog.

[Image: Michael Vi via Shutterstock]

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