A Tesla Model S is seen during a Tesla event in Palo Alto, October 14, 2015 (REUTERS / Beck Diefenbach)
Detroit: As electric carmaker Tesla prepares to release quarterly results, it is also trying to fend off escalating worker complaints about pay and safety at its California factory, where a move to unionize is gaining steam.
The union drive is a challenge for the company, which has faced production delays and is trying to speed up delivery of its mid-priced Tesla 3. Tesla said it expects to build 100,000 vehicles this year at the complex in Fremont, California, just south of San Francisco.
In a letter to Tesla’s independent board members, workers requested access to the automaker’s safety plan as well as clarity on compensation and a promise of no retaliation against employees as they try to form a union.
The United Auto Workers is in the process of trying to unionize the 10,000 Tesla workers at the Fremont plant, alleging the company has a poor safety record—a charge it vehemently denies.
Tesla founder and chief executive Elon Musk has used Twitter to criticise the union drive and denied the charges.
