By Nora Eckert, Daniel Wiessner
DETROIT (Reuters) -The United Auto Employees Union mentioned on Tuesday it has filed complaints with the Nationwide Labor Relations Board in opposition to Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk over makes an attempt to threaten and intimidate staff.
It’s unclear whether or not the NLRB would take motion in opposition to Trump for his feedback on Monday throughout a two-hour dialog with Musk that was broadcast on social media platform X.
The UAW seized upon Trump’s remarks because the union rallies behind Democratic presidential candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris and encourages its almost 400,000 staff to vote for her over Trump. The difficulty is particularly pertinent in battleground states like Michigan which might decide who wins the White Home in November. The UAW endorsed Harris on the finish of July.
“You are the best cutter,” Trump mentioned to Musk throughout Monday’s dialog, complimenting the CEO’s capacity to chop prices by saying he wouldn’t tolerate staff occurring strike. “I imply, I take a look at what you do. You stroll in, you simply say: ‘You need to stop?’ They go on strike – I will not point out the identify of the corporate – however they go on strike. And also you say: ‘That is okay, you are all gone.'”
Musk chuckled however didn’t reply to Trump’s feedback, making it more durable for the NLRB to search out him accountable for making unlawful threats to staff at his firms, mentioned Wilma Liebman, chair of the NLRB beneath former President Barack Obama.
Beneath federal regulation, staff can’t be fired for occurring strike, and threatening to take action is prohibited beneath the Nationwide Labor Relations Act, the UAW mentioned in an announcement.
After the union’s motion on Tuesday, Musk criticized UAW President Shawn Fain in a social media put up, alluding to 2 previous union presidents who went to jail for bribery and corruption. “Primarily based on latest information, it appears like this man will be a part of them!” Musk mentioned.
A court-appointed monitor of the UAW is investigating a number of union executives, together with allegations that Fain retaliated in opposition to a member of his board when the particular person didn’t take actions that might have benefitted Fain’s home associate and her sister. The UAW couldn’t instantly be reached to touch upon Musk’s response.
Trump marketing campaign officers mentioned his pledged 100% tariff on Chinese language imports would strengthen the trade, whereas Harris’ EV insurance policies are hurting American manufacturing.
“This frivolous lawsuit is a shameless political stunt meant to erode President Trump’s overwhelming help amongst America’s staff,” Trump marketing campaign senior adviser Brian Hughes mentioned in an announcement.
The Harris marketing campaign didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark after the UAW’s motion.
Fain and Trump have exchanged barbs up to now.
“Each Trump and Musk need working class individuals to sit down down and shut up, they usually chortle about it overtly. It’s disgusting, unlawful, and completely predictable from these two clowns,” Fain mentioned in an announcement on Tuesday.
Trump has known as for the union chief to be fired, saying he’s answerable for U.S. auto manufacturing changing into weaker.
UAW members in Michigan are likely to facet with Democrats, however pro-Trump staff have organized their very own rallies in latest weeks.
Within the 2020 presidential race, 62% of Michigan households with a union member voted for President Joe Biden, serving to him win the state, based on Edison Analysis. Against this, union households break up 53% to 40% for Hillary Clinton in 2016, when she narrowly misplaced the state and the nationwide race.
SENDING A MESSAGE
The NLRB has restricted energy to punish illegal labor practices and the method typically lasts years. In instances involving unlawful threats, the board can order employers to stop and desist from such conduct and to put up notices within the office informing staff of their rights. Unions can even use favorable rulings from the NLRB to interact staff they’re making an attempt to prepare.
“Everybody is aware of the NLRB treatments are toothless to begin with, nevertheless it’s not a lot for the treatment as for sending each a political message and an organizing message,” former NLRB head Liebman mentioned, referring to the UAW’s motion on Tuesday.
Fain filed separate complaints with the NLRB in opposition to the Trump marketing campaign and Tesla citing Trump and Musk because the employers’ representatives, claiming each males had made statements suggesting they “would hearth staff engaged in protected concerted exercise, together with putting.” The complaints didn’t present additional element.
The NLRB has jurisdiction over the Trump marketing campaign as an employer, however not Trump himself.
The UAW led a six-week strike in opposition to Detroit’s Massive Three automakers final autumn, earlier than successful report contracts.
MUSK AND THE NLRB
Musk, who has endorsed Trump for president, has had quite a few run-ins with the labor board. His rocket firm SpaceX is presently difficult your entire construction of the company in a pair of pending lawsuits. These instances stemmed from NLRB complaints accusing SpaceX of firing engineers who have been vital of Musk and forcing staff to signal severance agreements with illegal phrases.
In March, a U.S. appeals court docket upheld an NLRB determination that mentioned Musk illegally threatened Tesla staff by tweeting in 2018: “Nothing stopping Tesla group at our automotive plant from voting union … However why pay union dues & hand over inventory choices for nothing?”
Tesla is individually dealing with allegations from the board that it illegally discouraged unionizing at a Buffalo, New York, plant.
(Reporting by Nora Eckert in Detroit and Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York; Further reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru, Jarrett Renshaw in Philadelphia, Tim Reid in Washington and Ben Klayman in Detroit; Modifying by Tasim Zahid, Rosalba O’Brien and Matthew Lewis)
