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Tesla workers launch union campaign in New York


Tesla Inc. workers in New York state are launching a unionization campaign, teeing up a potential first for the electric-vehicle maker and the latest labor challenge for Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk.

The employees, who label data for Tesla’s Autopilot technology at the company’s plant in Buffalo, New York, sent an email to Musk early Tuesday with their intent to unionize.

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Employees say they’re seeking better pay and job security alongside a reduction in production pressures that they say have been harmful to their health.

Workers at the plant told Bloomberg News that Tesla monitors keystrokes to track how long employees spend per task and how much of the day they spend actively working. This leads some to avoid taking bathroom breaks, six employees said.

“People are tired of being treated like robots,” said Al Celli, a member of the union’s organizing committee.

If successful, the union would be a first for Tesla, which unlike other leading automakers has successfully resisted unionization at its US factories.

This campaign also represents a new test for the embattled US labor movement, which has recently notched a series of victories at longtime non-union firms, including Amazon.com Inc., Apple Inc. and Starbucks Corp.

“Unionizing will further accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy because it will give us a voice in our workplace and in the goals we set for ourselves to accomplish,” the letter to management said. It also urged the company to agree to a set of principles restricting anti-union tactics.

Musk and Tesla’s human resources chief did not respond to emailed inquiries. Tesla disbanded its press-relations team in 2020.

Tesla shares are up 4.2 percent as of 10:18 a.m. in New York, buoyed by a filing that billionaire George Soros’s firm significantly increased its shares in the company last quarter. The stock is up 65% this year to date after a momentous tumble through 2022.

‘I Want a Voice’

The Buffalo plant has more than 800 Autopilot analysts in non-engineering roles that contribute to Tesla’s automated-driving development, including by identifying objects in images its vehicles capture and helping its systems recognize them on the road, according to the union. They’re hired at a starting pay of around $19 per hour.

In addition to increased pay and job security, the employees said they aim to secure a say in workplace decision-making, and to curb monitoring, metrics and production pressure.

“We have such a rush to get things done that I don’t know if it’s actually being well thought out,” Celli said. “It’s just, ‘Let’s get this out as fast as we can.’”

Musk has talked about automating Autopilot analysts’ roles. “The Holy Grail is auto labeling,” he said during a quarterly earnings call in April 2021. “The trainers train the training system and then the system auto-labels the data and then the human labelers just need to look at the labeling to confirm that it is correct and perhaps make edits.

Tesla dismissed hundreds of workers performing these jobs in California last year, Bloomberg reported in June.

Workers plan to circulate Valentine-themed leaflets at the plant on Tuesday reading “Roses are red / violets are blue / forming a union starts with you, with links to a website where employees can sign union cards.”

The Tesla employees are organizing with the Service Employees International Union affiliate Workers United, which has successfully unionized hundreds of Starbucks cafes across the US since December 2021, starting with a store in Buffalo about six miles from the Tesla plant. Along with the Autopilot workers, the union said it is working to organize the roughly 1,000 manufacturing employees at the Tesla facility.

Tesla is “another example of workers showing that there is no such thing as an unorganizable workplace,” said Jaz Brisack, a Workers United organizer and architect of the Starbucks campaign who is helping spearhead the new organizing effort at Tesla.

“The narrative on unions has shifted thanks to Starbucks and other companies doing it first, especially for Gen Z workers who make up a large share of the Autopilot staff,” said employee Keenan Lasch.

Under US law, employers have the option to voluntarily recognize a union if the majority of workers sign up; otherwise, workers can petition the US National Labor Relations Board to hold an election, and if a union gets the majority of the votes, the employer is legally required to collectively bargain with the group.

Workers at the plant have been discussing unionization informally for several months on a Discord server, and said they began building an organizing committee in the fall after the company shut down an internal chat channel where employees aired grievances about issues such as the handling of snow days.

“I want a voice with my company — we don’t really have one,” said Sara Costantino, an employee at the Buffalo plant. “The voice we did have, they took away.”

An Uphill Battle

Prior unionization efforts at Tesla have struggled to gain traction. In 2017, staff at the company’s Fremont, California, factory unveiled a campaign with the United Auto Workers, and in 2018, the United Steelworkers and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers announced an effort to organize in Buffalo; neither ended up petitioning for a unionization vote.

A bipartisan group of US labor board members ruled in 2021 that Tesla repeatedly violated federal law in Fremont, including by “coercively interrogating” union supporters and firing one because of his activism. Tesla has denied wrongdoing and is appealing that ruling.

“The example of Tesla is they can continue to break the law and put a chill over the workplace,” Cindy Estrada, who until recently was the UAW’s vice president overseeing organizing, said in November.

In tweets last year, Musk wrote that “The degree to which the unions control the Dems is insane,” and “A union is just another corporation.” In a 2018 tweet, he wrote that there was “Nothing stopping Tesla team at our car plant from voting union in California. But why pay union dues & give up stock options for nothing?”

Lasch, the Tesla Autopilot analyst, said he hopes current public scrutiny on the company would help deter it from union-busting. “Any kind of retaliation would only ever make them look bad, and it’s not something they can really afford to do right now.”

The new Tesla union drive follows a series of workplace controversies at Musk’s other companies. Workers at Space Exploration Technologies Corp. filed federal complaints last year alleging they were illegally retaliated against for working on an open letter criticizing Musk.

At Twitter Inc., which Musk bought last year, workers filed class-action lawsuits, labor-board complaints and arbitration claims related to Musk’s mass-layoff of roughly half of the social media company’s employees.

The Buffalo Tesla workers say their campaign isn’t about any personal beef with their CEO. “I have nothing against the guy,” said employee Will Hance. “I just want the ability to have a say in my workplace.”

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Abu Dhabi Overtakes Oslo for Sovereign Wealth Fund Capital in Global SWF’s First City Ranking

Today, industry specialist Global SWF published a special report announcing a new global ranking of cities according to the capital managed by their Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs). The findings show that Abu Dhabi is the leading city that manages the most SWF capital globally, thanks to the US$ 1.7 trillion in assets managed by its various SWFs headquartered in the capital of the UAE. These include the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), Mubadala Investment Company (MIC), Abu Dhabi Developmental
Holding Company (ADQ), and the Emirates Investment Authority (EIA). Abu Dhabi now ranks slightly above Oslo, home to the world’s largest SWF, the Government Pension Fund (GPF), which manages over US$ 1.6 trillion in assets. Abu Dhabi and Oslo are followed by Beijing (headquarters of the China Investment Corporation), Singapore (with GIC Private and Temasek Holdings), Riyadh (home to the
Public Investment Fund), and Hong Kong (where China’s second SWF, SAFE
Investment Corporation, operates from). Together, these six cities represent two thirds
of the capital managed by SWFs globally, i.e., US$ 12.5 trillion as of October 1, 2024.
For the past few decades, Abu Dhabi has grown an impressive portfolio of institutional
investors, which are among the world’s largest and most active dealmakers. In addition
to its SWFs, the emirate is home to several other asset owners, including central banks,
pension funds, and family offices linked to member of the Royal Family. Altogether, Abu
Dhabi’s public capital is estimated at US$ 2.3 trillion and is projected to reach US$ 3.4
trillion by 2030, according to Global SWF estimates.
Abu Dhabi, often referred to as the “Capital of Capital,” also leads when it comes to
human capital i.e., the number of personnel employed by SWFs of that jurisdiction, with
3,107 staff working for funds based in the city.
Diego López, Founder and Managing Director of Global SWF, said: “The world ranking
confirms the concentration of Sovereign Wealth Funds in a select number of cities,
underscoring the significance of these financial hubs on the global stage. This report
offers valuable insights into the landscape of SWF-managed capital and shows how it is
shifting and expanding in certain cities in the world.”

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AM Best Briefing in Dubai to Explore State of MENA Insurance Markets; Panel to Feature CEOs From Leading UAE Insurance Companies

AM Best will host a briefing focused on the insurance markets of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) on 20 November 2024, at Kempinski Central Avenue in Dubai.
At this annual regional market event, senior AM Best analysts and leading executives
from the (re)insurance industry will discuss recent developments in the MENA region’s
markets and anticipate their implications in the short-to-medium term. Included in the
programme will be a panel of chief executive officers at key insurance companies in the
United Arab Emirates: Abdellatif Abuqurah of Dubai Insurance; Jason Light of Emirates
Insurance; Charalampos Mylonas (Haris) of Abu Dhabi National Insurance Company
(ADNIC); and Dr. Ali Abdul Zahra of National General Insurance (NGI).
Shivash Bhagaloo, managing partner of Lux Actuaries & Consultants, will his present
his observations in an additional session regarding implementation of IFRS 17 in the
region. The event also will highlight the state of the global and MENA region
reinsurance sectors, as well as a talk on insurance ramifications stemming from the
major United Arab Emirates floods of April 2024. The programme will be followed by a
networking lunch.
Registration for the market briefing, which will take place in the Diamond Ballroom at the
Kempinski hotel, begins at 9:00 a.m. GST with introductory comments at 9:30 a.m.
Please visit www.ambest.com/conference/IMBMENA2024 for more information or to
register.
AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics
provider specialising in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United
States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in
London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City.

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Future of Automotive Mobility 2024: UAE Leads the Charge in Embracing Digital Car Purchases and Alternative Drivetrains

-UAE scores show highest percentage among the region in willingness to purchase a car
completely online
– Openness to fully autonomous cars has grown to 60% vs previous 32%.
– More than half of UAE respondents in the survey intend to move to hybrid cars during
next car purchase, while less than 15% intend to move to fully electric car.
– UAE sees strong use of new mobility services such as ride-hailing (Uber, Careem, Hala
Taxi)
– The perceived future importance of having a car is not only increasing in UAE but is
higher than any other major region globally, even China

Arthur D. Little (ADL) has released the fourth edition of its influential Future of Automotive Mobility (FOAM) report, presenting a detailed analysis of current and future trends in the automotive industry. This year’s study, with insights from over 16,000 respondents across 25 countries, includes a comprehensive focus on the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The report examines car ownership, electric vehicles,
autonomous driving, and new mobility services within the UAE.

“The UAE is at the forefront of automotive innovation and consumer readiness for new mobility
solutions,” said Alan Martinovich, Partner and Head of Automotive Practice in the Middle East
and India at Arthur D. Little. “Our findings highlight the UAE’s significant interest in
transitioning to electric vehicles, favorable attitudes towards autonomous driving technologies,
and a strong inclination towards digital transactions in car purchases. These insights are critical
for automotive manufacturers and policymakers navigating the evolving landscape of the UAE
automotive market.”
Key Findings for the UAE:
1. Car Ownership:
o Over half of UAE respondents perceive that the importance of owning a car is
increasing, with the study showing the increase higher than any other major
region, including China.
o Approximately 80% of UAE respondents expressed interest in buying new (as
opposed to used) cars, above Europe and the USA which have mature used
vehicle markets

2. Shift to Electric and Hybrid Vehicles:
o While a high number of UAE respondents currently own internal combustion
engine (ICE) vehicles, more than half intend that their next vehicle have an
alternative powertrain, with significant interest in electric and plug-in hybrid
(PHEV) options. Less than 15% plan to opt for pure battery electric vehicles
(BEVs).

3. Emerging Mobility Trends:

o Ride-hailing services are the most popular new mobility option among UAE
residents, with higher usage rates than traditional car sharing and ride sharing.
The study indicates a strong openness to switching to alternative transport modes
given the quality and service levels available today.

4. Autonomous Vehicles:
o UAE consumers are among the most open globally to adopting autonomous
vehicles, with a significant increase in favorable attitudes from 32% in previous
years to 60% this year versus approximately 30% in mature markets. Safety
concerns, both human and machine-related, remain the primary obstacles to
broader adoption.

5. Car Purchasing Behavior and Sustainability:
o The internet has become a dominant channel for UAE residents throughout the car
buying process, from finding the right vehicle to arranging test drives and closing
deals. UAE car buyers visit dealerships an average of 3.9 times before making a
purchase, higher than any other region in the world, emphasizing the need for
efficient integration of online and offline experiences.
o Upwards of 53% of respondents from the region would prefer to ‘close the deal’
and complete the purchase of their car online, which is the highest for any region
in the world.
o Sustainability is a key factor cited by UAE consumers as influencing car choice.
The UAE scored among the top half of regions, highlighting the importance of
environmental considerations.

“Our study confirms the promising market opportunities for car manufacturers (OEMs) and
distributors in the UAE” commented Philipp Seidel, Principal at Arthur D. Little and co-Author
of the Global Study. “Consumers in the Emirates show a great and increasing appetite for cars
while being among the most demanding globally when it comes to latest vehicle technologies
and a seamless purchase and service experience.”
The comprehensive report, “The Future of Automotive Mobility 2024” by Richard Parkin and
Philipp Seidel, delves into global automotive trends and their impact on various regions,
including the UAE. This study is an invaluable tool for industry stakeholders seeking to navigate
and leverage the dynamic changes driving the future of mobility.

 

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