Tesla ends Sweden's longest strike by buying out remaining striking workers

Published Aug 15, 10:46 PM UTC

Tesla has effectively ended the longest labor conflict in modern Swedish history by offering severance packages to all remaining striking members of the IF Metall union, which will officially call off the strike on August 19, 2026. The strike, which began on October 27, 2023, involved about 130 mechanics across seven workshops demanding a collective agreement. Tesla refused to sign such an agreement, instead absorbing sympathy actions across the Nordics—including port blockades and postal service disruptions—for nearly three years. The company ultimately paid the last strikers to leave, leaving the union's core demand unresolved. The article notes that Tesla's willingness to defend its labor model makes financial sense given its thinning profit margins and heavy capital expenditures on AI and manufacturing, as a collective agreement would raise costs and reduce workforce flexibility.