On Tuesday, the United Auto Workers (UAW) union filed federal labor complaints against former President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
The charges allege that both men threatened to intimidate workers considering going on strike.
The complaints stem from a Monday night interview on X, where Trump and Musk, who owns the platform, discussed Musk’s potential involvement in a future Trump administration.
Trump praised Musk for his stance against unions and recounted how Musk reportedly dismissed striking workers. Musk responded with laughter.
The UAW, which recently endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president, filed the charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). They accuse Trump and Musk of interfering with and coercing employees exercising their right to organize, suggesting they would be fired for participating in strikes.
UAW President Shawn Fain, a vocal critic of Trump, condemned the remarks as “disgusting, illegal, and totally predictable” behavior from both Trump and Musk. He praised President Biden for his support during the UAW’s strike last year and criticized Tesla as a prime target for union organizing.
In response, Trump’s campaign dismissed the charges as a politically motivated attempt to undermine Trump’s popularity among workers, claiming it was a baseless stunt.
The NLRB has received the charges but has not yet commented.
Tesla has yet to comment.
It’s uncertain if Musk or Trump will face serious penalties, as the NLRB will first investigate the claims. If they are found to be in violation, remedies typically involve stopping the offending behavior and compensating wrongfully terminated employees.
While this isn’t Musk’s first NLRB issue—he faced accusations earlier this year of impeding worker organization in a Buffalo factory—no specific workers fired by Musk were identified in the charges.
