German unions are criticising Tesla over its labour conditions and hours of operation.
Berlin, Germany, January 16, 2019 — With some calling for investigations into the automaker, Tesla (TSLA.O) has come under pressure from the German union IG Metall and politicians over claims by workers of unfair working hours and fear about speaking out at its Brandenburg plant.
At its annual press conference, IG Metall, which claims to regularly communicate with workers and has an office close to the plant, noted that an increasing number of them were complaining about longer workdays and limited leisure time.
“Workers started at Tesla with great enthusiasm for the project. Over time we are observing that this enthusiasm is withering,” Irene Schulz of IG Metall Berlin-Brandenburg-Sachsen said in a statement.
The non-disclosure agreements that employees were required to sign along with their employment contracts also caused them to feel increasingly hesitant about expressing their working circumstances in public, according to IG Metall.
These worries were exacerbated by a new position posted on Tesla’s career website for a “Security Intelligence Investigator,” who would work with the legal and human resources departments to gather “on-the-ground information both inside and outside Tesla walls in order to protect the company from threats.”
Tesla did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
