Tesla is set to increase wages for its production workers in the United States, following a trend seen in other automakers such as Volkswagen and Toyota. The move comes as the United Auto Workers (UAW) union seeks to organize non-unionized workers after striking new labor deals with the Detroit Three.
According to a report by Bloomberg News, Tesla’s production workers, including material handlers, production associates, and quality inspectors, will receive a “market adjustment pay increase.” The report, citing a flyer posted at Tesla’s facility in Fremont, California, did not specify the magnitude of the pay hike.
While Tesla, the world’s most valuable automaker, saw its shares decline by about 2% in early trading, the company has not immediately responded to Reuters’ request for comment on the wage increase.
CEO Elon Musk has been a vocal critic of unions and has expressed his disagreement with the concept. In November, at the New York Times DealBook Summit, Musk stated, “I disagree with the idea of unions. If Tesla is unionized, it’ll be because we deserve it and we failed in some way.”
Notably, Musk had previously opposed efforts by the UAW to organize Tesla’s Fremont factory. In 2018, he posted a tweet warning workers that they could lose stock options if they joined the union, an action later ruled illegal by the National Labor Relations Board.
