ABSTRACT

Literature on Tesla, the electric car-maker, has been overwhelmingly positive. Largely written by reporters or technology enthusiasts, the focus is on innovation – how Tesla is shaking up the industry, acting as a ‘disrupter of Detroit’, and launching an electric car ‘revolution’. Tesla’s signature plant in Fremont, California has also been viewed, as CEO Elon Musk puts it, as the ‘factory of the future’. This article changes the focus, looking at the experience of Tesla’s workers and showing that there was nothing futuristic about their working conditions. Like generations of earlier factory workers - especially in auto-making - Tesla workers complained about low wages, high workloads, mandatory overtime, and workplace injuries. Faced with demands for union recognition, Tesla’s opposition also followed broader historical patterns. Placing Tesla within the context of labor relations in auto-making– rather than viewing it as a separate, technology-based start-up – this article argues that Tesla was the factory of the past as much as the future. Ultimately, the questions raised by Tesla’s story were familiar ones of worker rights, despite the product being made. Low wages and lack of collective bargaining had faced millions of American workers for decades. In twenty-first century America, they remain key issues.

摘要

关于电动汽车制造商特斯拉的文献非常积极。主要由记者或技术爱好者撰写，重点是创新——特斯拉如何撼动行业，充当“底特律的破坏者”，并发起电动汽车“革命”。正如首席执行官埃隆马斯克所说，特斯拉在加利福尼亚州弗里蒙特的标志性工厂也被视为“未来工厂”。这篇文章改变了焦点，审视了特斯拉工人的经历，并表明他们的工作条件没有任何未来感。与前几代工厂工人一样——尤其是在汽车制造行业——特斯拉工人抱怨工资低、工作量大、强制加班和工伤。面对工会承认的要求，特斯拉的反对也遵循了更广泛的历史模式。将特斯拉置于汽车制造劳资关系的背景下——而不是将其视为一个独立的、以技术为基础的初创公司——本文认为特斯拉既是过去的工厂，也是未来的工厂。最终，特斯拉的故事提出的问题是人们熟悉的工人权利问题，尽管产品是制造出来的。几十年来，数百万美国工人面临着低工资和缺乏集体谈判的问题。在 21 世纪的美国，它们仍然是关键问题。几十年来，数百万美国工人面临着低工资和缺乏集体谈判的问题。在 21 世纪的美国，它们仍然是关键问题。几十年来，数百万美国工人面临着低工资和缺乏集体谈判的问题。在 21 世纪的美国，它们仍然是关键问题。