*

Country's biggest union joins labour dispute against Tesla

*

Unions see the fight as vital to protect unique labour

model

*

Tesla and Musk refuse to sign collective agreements

*

Unionen may escalate efforts if action is circumvented

By Marie Mannes

STOCKHOLM, May 14 (Reuters) - Sweden's biggest union on

Tuesday threw its weight behind a six-month-old strike by

mechanics at Tesla, escalating a conflict the

notoriously union-shy company is facing with a Nordic labour

force committed to collective bargaining.

The focus of the dispute - among Sweden's longest - is Tesla

CEO Elon Musk's refusal to sign a collective bargaining

agreement allowing the union to strike deals for the workforce

as a whole.

Last month, Musk said the labour storm had passed in the country

where Tesla's Model Y is the top-selling car, but he was

contradicted by a representative for metal workers' union IF

Metall, who said its strike continued.

IF Metall confirmed to Reuters that about 44 of its members

- roughly a third of the company's Swedish mechanics - have

downed tools at Tesla, which does not produce vehicles in Sweden

but services them locally.

"The strike is ongoing and we have no signs of reaching an

agreement in the near future," Marie Nilsson, head of IF Metall,

said. "We have had a few sittings with the Swedish management

during April, but... Tesla has shown little willingness in

discussing an end to the conflict."

More than a dozen unions have launched action in support of IF

Metall's strike, with Unionen the latest and biggest.

"It is fundamentally important to protect our collective

agreement system," Martin Wastfeldt, head of negotiations at

Unionen, a white-collar union with about 700,000 members, told

Reuters.

Unionen began a blockade on Tuesday affecting all work for

Tesla at DEKRA Industrial AB, which carries out legally mandated

equipment inspections.

If Tesla seeks to circumvent the blockade by hiring other

providers, Wastfeldt said Unionen was prepared to do more.

This might involve Unionen members at the company that

produces licence plates for Tesla in Sweden, or administrative,

human resources and finance staff at Tesla itself.

"We have these measures in our arsenal to resolve labour

market conflicts," Wastfeldt said.

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment

on the ongoing strike. It has previously said its Swedish

employees have as good, or better, terms than those the union is

demanding.

The fight is key for the company, whose tough stance globally on

unions could be undermined if it buckles in Sweden, or if the

strike spreads to bigger units in places like Germany where it

is already tackling unrelated violent protests.

WAR CHEST

While the numbers on strike in Sweden are small, the stakes

are high.

Allowing companies linked with the green and digital

transition to operate in Sweden without collective agreements

would undermine unions and threaten the Swedish model, forcing

the state to take greater control.

"For IF Metall it is very important not to lose. They simply

cannot do that," trade union expert Anders Kjellberg said.

Sweden's unions have taken heart from past successes -

Unionen signed up payment services group Klarna to a collective

agreement last year - while war chests are ample, with more than

10 billion Swedish crowns ($921 million) in IF Metall's strike

fund alone.

Yet there is little sign of the conflict ending any time

soon.

Since December, Nordic dockworkers have blocked Tesla's car

deliveries by ship to Sweden. But while union action has caused

some disruption, there is little sign it is hitting Tesla's

sales, with its Swedish new vehicle registrations broadly

keeping pace with the market.

Since February, Tesla has brought in about 25 temporary

staff from other European countries, some for multiple

short-term stays.

While it was unclear to what extent, if any, this was linked

with the strike, it contrasted with the previous year, when no

such workers were brought in, a review of labor registrations

showed.

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request to clarify.

While the conflict for now looks deadlocked, Kjellberg

pointed to possible avenues for an eventual resolution.

Amazon ( AMZN ), for example, has a third-party company

manage its Swedish warehouses signed up to collective

agreements, allowing the U.S parent company to avoid doing so.

"It could last for months or even years, because IF Metall

can't give up," Kjellberg said. "But in time, it is possible

both parties will want to find a solution."

($1 = 10.8617 Swedish crowns)