A powerful German union has threatened a potential strike at Tesla Gigafactory Berlin after a contentious meeting with management.
Tesla recently held a staff meeting at Gigafactory Berlin amid a push to unionize the factory.
A majority of Tesla Gigafactory Berlin workers voted against union representatives of IG Metall in their new work council earlier this year, but the union has still made significant progress. The powerful union managed to get 16 seats on the worker council, more than any other group.
The union is using allegations of safety concerns, pay and more at the factory.
Tesla, which is notoriously against unionization, has recently pushed back against the effort, and it has promoted initiatives to improve morale, including a newly unveiled gym:
And a new rave cave:
According to the German publication DW, safety, job security, and pay concerns pushed by IG Metall dominated the discussion at the meeting. Recent layoffs were also discussed.
But the moment that took over all the headlines was when plant manager Andre Thierig took the stage and complained about coffee mugs disappearing from the plant:
I’m just going to give you a figure. We’ve bought 65,000 coffee mugs since we started production here. 65.000! Statistically speaking, each of you already has five Ikea coffee cups at home. I’m really tired of approving orders to buy more coffee cups.
This was met by laughter from the crowd, but Thierig seriously said that he would take away cutlery from the break rooms if it continued.
On a more serious note, IG Metall union secretary Jannes Bojert stated that a strike is a possibility amid tensions between workers and the management, but it would be a “last resort”.
Michaela Schmitz, the reelected leader of the Worker’s Council, believes that the union is the one stirring things up.
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