Elon Musk calls strikes ‘insane’ as Swedish workers take on Tesla

Elon Musk has decried a wave of “insane” strikes focused on Tesla workshops in Sweden, as workers target the US electric car manufacturer in a strike calling for collective bargaining rights.

In what has been portrayed as the largest fight in decades to save Sweden’s union model from global labour practices, the powerful trade union IF Metall has been leading a strike across eight Tesla workplaces in Sweden for five weeks.

It is the first time workers for the US carmaker have gone on strike and on Thursday, Musk, the tech billionaire and chief executive of Tesla, made his feelings clear, writing on X, formerly Twitter: “This is insane.”

SayJess,
@SayJess@lemmy.blahaj.zone avatar

Poor guy. It must be so difficult watching his workers joining together to demand their fair share of his company’s profits. It’d be a real shame if workers in other countries follow suit. I can’t even begin to imagine how difficult it must be to be a billionaire. Those poor bastards.

EmergMemeHologram,

If workers tried this in Canada the police would roll them over.

It’s a crime to block roads and railways in protest here, unless the police like you, then they take selfies with you.

nexusband,
@nexusband@lemmy.world avatar

Well, Tesla doesn’t have a production facility in Canada, AFAIK. However…Germany has…and i think he’s going to regret that big time.

Cannacheques,

Nah I’m sure the Germans would love to work with Tesla corp haha

LillyPip,

Musk could spend a million dollars per day for 500 years and still be a billionaire. That’s a literally incomprehensible amount of money.

He could single-handedly end world hunger and barely notice a difference in his staggering wealth. Just paying his fair share of taxes would have a seismic effect on the US in so many ways, but instead he hoards more and more, siphoning wealth from those who need it most into coffers so large, he can’t even really notice.

It’s obscene.

SayJess,
@SayJess@lemmy.blahaj.zone avatar

Totally is. And the appetite doesn’t seem to be anywhere near the tipping point yet. Unfortunate.

LillyPip,

The appetite is limitless. Wealth hoarding is just like every other type of hoarding. They’re trying to fill a hole in themselves with stuff, and they collect far more than will ever be useful to them, to the detriment of themselves and everyone else. Billionaires just do it at a scale that hurts us all.

set_secret, (edited )

Hmmm calling your workers insane for striking due to their lives and wellbeings endangered, seems entirely responsible and in no way insane.

Is he out of touch? No it is the workers who are wrong.

beebarfbadger,

Well, SOMEONE is gonna have to make sacrifices and we all know that it can’t be the rich guy, so…

kandoh,

He’s actually referring to the sympathy strikers. No Tesla can get a licence plate or registered in solidarity with the autoworkers.

Vlyn,

If money is just a high score for you and you can literally buy whatever you want, of course a strike is “insane”. It’s just money, right? Why are they mad?

Guntrigger,

For real, how much can a banana cost? 100 kronor??

squiblet,
squiblet avatar

More Trump-like shit. Anyone who opposes him is 'deranged' or 'crazy'.

deegeese,

“They are insane” = “I’m so far out of touch I can’t understand people who work for a living”

Zink,
  • “people giving a shit about the other people in their country”
LillyPip,

More like ‘I’m a sociopath who thinks petty things like empathy and basic human rights are stupid. Now get back to work, my servants are meant to be seen, not heard.’

WheeGeetheCat,
@WheeGeetheCat@sh.itjust.works avatar

USA strikers should take notes

Olhonestjim,

The rabble refuses to do my perfect bidding?! This is insanity!!

fne8w2ah,

Elmo’s clearly the one whose insane.

cosmicrookie,
@cosmicrookie@lemmy.world avatar

Waiting for Noway and Denmark to join in and make it even more insane

WanderFree,

Given the recent Dutch election I suspect trade unions may not be participating…

cosmicrookie,
@cosmicrookie@lemmy.world avatar

What does the Dutch election have to do with unions in Sweden, Noway and Denmark?

MartinXYZ,

I know there are Tesla Factories in Norway, but I don’t think there are any in Denmark. I’m Danish, but I could be wrong.

cosmicrookie,
@cosmicrookie@lemmy.world avatar

It’s more about the sympathy striking. If danish post clerks did not deliver letters to Tesla’s offices or like in Sweden, they won’t make number plates or unload them from the ships

neshura,

Let’s appreciate the insanity of opening factories in countries with some of the best unions and laws supporting unions and then doing a pikachu face when those unions go and decide to bust your kneecaps for essentially abusing the workers… Elon why did you even open a factory in sweden? It was obvious from the beginning this would happen.

prole,

Probably some insidious long term plan to weaken unions in Scandinavian countries.

spacegoat,

America are you awake

MartinXYZ,

At this hour? I doubt it.

RememberTheApollo_,

I’ll take “Things petulant billionaires say when they don’t get their way” for $1000, Alex.

Wes_Dev,

He’s so persecuted. Guys, guys, be nice to Elon. He’s just the victim here. There’s no way these strikes are a direct response to his policies and business practices.

Poor thing.

MuuuaadDib,

Oh here is some of your own medicine, how does it taste?

interceder270,

Guys, this is what success for the working class looks like.

If the ruling class is upset, it’s because we’re doing something right.

If they’re content, it’s because they’re fucking us up the ass with no lube or reach-around.

They literally want us to roll over and just take it. And some of us are proud to. Glad that number is rapidly diminishing, though.

Adori,
@Adori@lemmy.world avatar

Frfr, hate on them high billys

Dra, (edited )

I would love to see the number of people upvoting this who are genuinely working class.(remember, every downvote on my reply is a middle class person who does not practice what they preach)

bigFab,

Ofc every upvote is working class. There is no other reason I would upvote that comment

alienanimals,

deleted_by_author

    •
    orrk,

    i think your replying to the wrong person there buddy

    kWazt,

    No your

    Fraylor,

    Dude go fuck yourself with your dumbass point of view. People like you are literally scum. (Any downvote on this reply is additional proof this guy’s a retarded scumbag.)

    Emerald,

    Downvote for r word

    Fraylor,

    Downvoted for, well, being retarded.

    zuch0698o,

    Middle class is the working class and I support our unions. When I worked for one I got a fair wage and just because I’m not in one currently doesn’t mean you cant support them.

    bamboo,

    The middle class is a made up idea designed to divide the working class. You either have to work for a living or you don’t, and slightly higher income and a bit of savings doesn’t make your function in society entirely different even if it allows you more comfort.

    Dra,

    Nope. Totally different universes. Middle class people in the west like to roleplay as downtrodden but none of them have worked actual working class jobs and all enjoy at least some security of education

    bamboo,

    So you’re trying to tell me that because I have a degree, work in an office job, and have some savings, that I’m not working class? If I lost my job I’d have a few months in savings before I’d be digging into retirement funds, and even then I’d probably be completely broke within a year or two. That’s certainly a lot more comfort than someone who would miss rent next month, but ultimately I still am dependent on an employer and selling my labor, I do not have anywhere near enough money to live on dividends or interest payments. I see much more in common with someone making minimum wage than I do with the owner class who lives on rent, interest, and dividends without working.

    Dra,

    You dont think that’s middle class? Because you have to work to not run out of money?

    So do most of the upper classes. What you have the luxury of an education that allows them some freedom to work, and the comforts of knowledge work that allow them to not have to sacrifice their physical health and, most likely an income bracket that at least affords you some choice in where you live.

    The point is that high levels of migration, effectively forces your own countries working classes to compete with and deal with tons of cheap foreign labour coming in, with little or no conformity to the parent culture because it hasn’t been facilitated. The middle classes traditionally laugh at the working classes and claim they are being “racist”, “stupid” and “lazy” for complaining about this arrangement, while mostly avoiding it’s effects themselves.

    This voting is a result of the left wing, middle classes being unable to grasp the obvious effects of their voting record, instead pretending to each other in echo chambers that they are the real working classes and how shocking all this right wing-tilt is. Throwing the incumbent working class culture under a bus.

    barsoap,

    You can call it middle class if you want. But it’s also working class. Even most petite bourgeois are working class as they cannot live off capital interest.

    CancerMancer,

    You either live off wealth or you live off income. If you live off income you are a worker and workers need to stand together.

    Dra,

    This is, as I have described above, all well and good to say…

    …Apart from when you repeatedly support policies that further squeeze extant working classes, then have the gall to do this vague virtue signalling of “standing together”. It’s hypocritical.

    You are doing local workers in the country a disservice and the owning classes a great help to price them out of existence.

    Roflmasterbigpimp,
    @Roflmasterbigpimp@lemmy.world avatar

    Ah yes. I might have missed the memo where you became the Judge of who is working class or not.

    (And remember if you answer my comment you admit that you have no Idea what you are talking about and are just here to troll 🥸)

    prole,

    .(remember, every downvote on my reply is a middle class person who does not practice what they preach)

    Yeah no, that’s not how this works. You’re being downvoted for posting a stupid comment.

    deur,

    Bet you thought you were super smart with that one

    Dra,

    It’s an accurate observation, and it’s not so much that I consider myself smart, it’s more that I note most negative replies generally refuse to acknowledge the underlying issue (read: dumb).

    cro_magnon_gilf,

    The reason they have so many downvotes is because they buy them cheap on Amazon.com

    OnT: I’m Swedish and it’s good to see a proper strike, but the real thing motivating the unions on this isn’t workers rights or anything. The unions are subservient to the national labour union organisation, LO, who’ll do the shadiest shit to get more power for themselves, and don’t care about working conditions in the slightest. The only thing that’s a red line for them, is when corporations refuse to take part in the charade, by not signing a collective agreement.

    You have to pay some lip-service, even if it costs you. If you do, the unions will be on your side against the workers.

    WaxedWookie,

    “Waaaah my precious market forces are working against me.”

    They’ve seen 50-100% payrises in many cases - unions are important.

    Ranger,

    Unions that are bottom up organizations are important, Unions that are beholden to the political class are just a way to control us.

    WaxedWookie,

    Sure, I guess.

    Eating vegetables is good too - rotten vegetables are bad to eat though.

    Ranger,

    Remember how the railroad workers trid to strike & congress shut them down? Unions in America are not like Unions in Europe.

    WaxedWookie,

    I’ll put my response aside and ask - What’s your point? Don’t unionise?

    Ranger,

    Wildcat unions > corporatist unions

    WaxedWookie, (edited )

    I don’t have a strong opinion one way or the other (though I think your binary framing of wildcat Vs corporatist is a little dishonest), but looking at the current Tesla dispute in Sweden, the effect is massive because it’s a cohesive, multi-sector strike. Seems like that’s a pretty effective case of “us” controlling “them”, no?

    Ranger,

    Yeah that the point the Swedish unions aren’t working in a framework that’s designed to give the political establishment control over the unions. If our ability to legally protest political matters could be vetoed by the people in power what effect do you think it would have on likelihood of effecting change through protect?

    WaxedWookie,

    That’s not a wildcat union, and those strikes were backed by Swedish courts - while I don’t strongly disagree with your point (it varies based on the applicable legislative landscape for one), this example proves the opposite of your point if anything.

    Your binary framing is bad enough that it’s working against you, and your comprehension of the terms you’re using doesn’t help. Your underlying ideas aren’t terrible, but they are lacking nuance (see the binary framing) that means they only work in certain contexts such as a hostile legislative environment - not real world examples like Sweden.

    Ranger,

    Yes, I know what a wildcat union is and yes, that’s what I’m saying. That’s nice that the courts in Sweden have graciously given permission for unions to be unions but that’s not the situation in the US, the unions are at the whims of the political establishment in DC who through the two parts have a strangle hold on the electoral system. I don’t see the democrats giving up those power anytime soon.

    WaxedWookie,

    There’s definitely benefit to working within the law when you’re able - it allows for things like hyper-effective multi-sector strikes that wouldn’t otherwise happen (see Sweden). That said, under different circumstances, illegal strikes are necessary to get the job done.

    Biden breaking the rail strike was terrible, but a product of the circumstances at that point - since then, he’s made some surprisingly big pro-union moves that will almost certainly increase union membership and bear fruit down the road.

    sunbytes,

    The government is the bit that is different. The union is the same. They were just threatened more effectively.

    sunbytes,

    Unions consisting entirely of Vampires and other human-flesh/blood consuming monsters of myth and legend are also bad.

    Because of the murders and the consuming of human flesh and blood.

    CosmicCleric,
    @CosmicCleric@lemmy.world avatar

    You forgot to mention also the mess that needs to be cleaned up.

    DeepGradientAscent,
    @DeepGradientAscent@programming.dev avatar

    Damn I’m sorry you’re getting downvoted. Every organization is susceptible to corruption. Bottom-up or top-down.

    CosmicCleric,
    @CosmicCleric@lemmy.world avatar

    Sometimes it’s not about the truth of the statement, but how it’s attempting to shape a certain narrative, that gets the vote, up or down.

    CancerMancer,

    This is exactly why I downvoted it. It’s a comment meant to disparage unions without appropriate context, a classic attack by bad faith actors.

    CosmicCleric,
    @CosmicCleric@lemmy.world avatar

    Yep. Scaring people with corruption is usually the number one way of trying to discourage people for wanting unions.

    And it’s funny that no other form of governance that can be susceptible to corruption is ever discussed in a discussion about unions.

    Ranger,

    It’s ok, my instance doesn’t have down vote so I don’t even see them.

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