Tesla Sues Sweden Over License Plates as Labor Dispute Escalates
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1970-01-01 08:00
Ahead of its Cybertruck launch this week, Tesla is battling it out with Swedish authorities

Ahead of its Cybertruck launch this week, Tesla is battling it out with Swedish authorities over access to license plates for its electric vehicles.

As the Associated Press reports, Tesla sued Sweden’s Transport Agency last week for failing to hand over the license plates due to a postal strike. But the larger issue is Tesla's refusal to sign a collective bargaining agreement for workers. These contracts are common in Sweden, but Tesla and CEO Elon Musk have never been fans of unions.

According to Swedish publication Dagens Industri, a judge quickly ruled that Tesla should be able to retrieve the existing license plates, but Swedish officials have two weeks to respond.

Tesla has service centers in Sweden, but no manufacturing plants, the AP says. Last month, members of the country's metalworkers' union walked out of service centers to protest the lack of a collective bargaining agreement. Earlier this month, the Swedish Transport Workers' Union also imposed a blockade against the unloading and loading of Tesla cars in all Swedish ports.

In a Nov. 23 tweet, Musk said "this is insane" on a news story about the license plate spat.

Tags cars and auto