UAW Head Ray Curry Said He Hasn’t Talked With Elon Musk About Tesla Union Vote

In early March, Elon Musk called UAW to hold votes at the Tesla plant. The UAW head said he hasn’t talked to Tesla Inc.’s Elon Musk after the CEO’s invitation to hold a union vote. However, he was open to such talks if the company was dealing with past issues.

During a roundtable discussion with the Automotive Press Association, UAW head Ray Curry said he hadn’t talked with Elon Musk or any Tesla representative. In the hour-long session, Curry also explained how the transition to electric vehicles will affect union negotiations in 2023. Further, he also made it clear on organizing new electric vehicle companies. He also stated the supply chain disruptions that could bring about business opportunities in the United States.

Musk called on the United Auto Workers during the current month to hold a vote on Tesla, a change from previous statements he made criticizing unionization. Musk said via Twitter in early March that he would like to invite the UAW to hold a union vote at their convenience. Tesla will do not stop them.

Tesla, +0.71% employees, are not unionized. Some employees at the Fremont, California, plant tried to organize several years ago with the help of the UAW, but Tesla took steps to prevent the push. The National Labor Relations Board managed that they include coercively interrogating employees. Further, they threatened them with the loss of stock options, which abused US labor law. 

Curry said that Tesla could make obvious its commitment to ‘engaging in unionization talks.’ It addressed the issues raised by the NLRB regarding the reinstatement of laid-off workers and withdrew its appeal of the resolution of the board.