BERLIN (Reuters: Tesla (NASDAQ)) will elect its first work council in Berlin on February 28th, according to IG Metall (Germany’s biggest union). They expressed concern about the timing of the election and questioned whether it would be representative.

One in six of approximately 12,000 expected workers at the plant has been hired to date. This is partly because Tesla still needs final approval from the local authorities before it can begin production. It will have 19 members.

IG Metall is a union representing workers from both the automotive industry and other sectors. It fears that calling an electoral vote before a greater number of workers have been hired may lead to a more centralized management-dominated council.

Only employees with a minimum of six months experience in a German company can run for office under German labor law.

No matter how many votes are cast, the results will still be valid. A new election cannot be called for after two years of inactivity if there has been more than a double of the workforce.

“Those hired so far do not represent the workforce as it will look when production begins or reaches full capacity,” said Birgit Dietze, head of IG Metall’s regional office for Berlin-Brandenburg-Saxony, where Tesla’s factory https://reut.rs/30XbqxO is located

Her comment echoed statements she made in https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/german-union-fears-new-tesla-works-council-will-be-top-heavy-2021-11-24November, when the union established that an election was on the cards.

Tesla representatives could not be reached immediately.

Chief Executive Elon Musk has sparred with organised labour in the past and was ordered https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tesla-nrlb-musk-idUSKBN2BH3BV in March last year to delete a comment made on Twitter (NYSE:) in 2018, which threatened to strip U.S. employees of their stock options if they formed a union.