On December 11, four Nordic pension funds jointly announced that they would send a letter to Tesla, urging the company to respect the collective bargaining rights of its workers.Â
Swedish mechanics demanded collective bargaining rights from Tesla, but the company didn’t agree to comply with their demands. As a result, some pension funds sold their Tesla stock, and the situation inspired regional solidarity strikes
Due to a lengthy history of communication between labor unions and company groups, the labor market model in the Nordic region combines considerable employment mobility with income stability for the unemployed. The Nordics have flourished as one of the world’s most successful and peaceful with this model.Â
Rasmus Bessing, who oversees responsible investments at PFA, the biggest non-state pension fund in Denmark, states, “As supporters of Tesla, we acknowledge the company’s significant contribution to the electrification of the transportation industry, but we also urge the management to find a way to resolve the dispute.” He continues, “PFA has chosen to be a co-signatory of a letter to the management of Tesla, where we draw attention to the fact that in Sweden and the other Nordic countries, there is a long tradition of collective agreements being entered into in large part of the labor market.”
Due to strong investor interest, the co-signing date was moved up to this week, according to Kiran Aziz, KLP‘s head of responsible investments. Both PensionDanmark of Denmark and Folksam of Sweden have stated that they will sign the letter.
With a $6.8 billion holding in Tesla, Norway’s national wealth fund is the company’s seventh-largest stakeholder. Last week, the fund announced it will continue pressuring the business to uphold labor rights like collective bargaining.
