Tesla Giga Berlin Employees Elect a New Work Council, But There Is a Big Gap Between Tesla and the IG Metall Union

In the past few days, around 12,500 Giga Berlin employees have been called upon to elect their employee representatives at the electric car manufacturer's factory in Grünheide. But the result of this Work Council electing is interpreted differently - and the dispute over a collective agreement is likely to continue. 

According to Tesla, almost 80 percent of the workforce took part in the vote.

But the union is not happy. They see things differently. They say nearly 60 percent of votes went to non-union groups. That means 23 out of 39 seats will be filled by candidates from these groups.

Tesla's factory manager André Thierig said most workers don't want a union works council. This shows a big gap between the factory's management, the old works council, and the union.

#GigaBerlinBrandenburg
- Works council election -
The majority of GigaBerlin employees have spoken out against a union works council.
Plant manager @AndrThie :
" I thank all employees for the high voter turnout of almost 80% and your vote for an independent future of… pic.twitter.com/CSrM2qvSPw
— Gigafactory Berlin News (@Gf4Tesla) March 21, 2024

The union complained about working conditions, pay, and how workers are treated. But the management thinks their way is better for everyone.

This isn't the first time there's been a fight over the works council. The vote was supposed to happen in February, but it got delayed. The union said they needed more time to prepare.

Two years ago, Tesla surprised the union with its first works council election. Since then, the union has been pushing for better conditions and higher pay. Last year in October, Tesla did want to increase wages at Giga Berlin to keep people from contacting IG Metall with free food.

But Tesla doesn't want to negotiate a group agreement. They say they're focused on solving problems without causing more trouble.

They offer other benefits like free charging for electric cars and free shuttles. They also made agreements with workers without a group agreement.

Some workers say accidents happen at Tesla, but they don't ignore them.

As Tagesschau reports, the new employee representatives are scheduled to start working at the end of March. “We will continue our successful collaboration with the works council,” said a Tesla spokeswoman. IG Metall will probably try to work towards a collective agreement with more influence in the works council. However, management would have to play along with this, and that is currently not expected. 

In the meantime, we had last month spotted a smaller vehicle next to a Model Y at Giga Berlin, and there's a debate going on trying to determine what this is exactly.

Armen Hareyan is the founder and the Editor in Chief of Torque News. He founded TorqueNews.com in 2010, which since then has been publishing expert news and analysis about the automotive industry. He can be reached at Torque News Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, and Youtube. He has more than a decade of expertise in the automotive industry with a special interest in Tesla and electric vehicles.