Rhode Islanders protest outside the Tesla Showroom and Service Center in Providence
“This protest was a grassroots effort that was very easy to
organize because no one voted for Elon Musk, and we will not stand idly by
while he dismantles our government,” said Ashley and Kristen, who helped
organize the protest outside the Tesla dealership in Providence. “On what
authority is this billionaire firing federal employees and restructuring our
systems? Congress, an equal branch of government, is inept and an active
participant in this takeover of our government - this coup.
“The executive branch is refusing to follow court orders,
and they are installing overt fascists in every level of our government. So, we
the people, organized to rise up to protect the democracy and civil rights that
our government has refused to do. We will not stand by while an unelected
billionaire and a group of oligarchs steal our money and destroy our rights and
systems. We, the people, resist. As long as Elon Musk focuses his energy on
this effort instead of his businesses, he can expect us to focus on him and his
businesses.”
Here’s the video, followed by more pictures from journalist Phil Eil: Tesla Protest in Providence - March 16, 2025
Former Providence Mayor Joseph Paolino Jr. is the man
responsible for bringing Tesla to Providence in 2023. I attended the opening
of the service center. Tesla employees were forbidden from speaking to
the press at the event, so I asked the former Mayor (Tesla’s landlord in
Providence) about Elon Musk’s terrible record on labor relations.1 Note that this all happened in 2023, years
before Elon Musk started giving Nazi salutes:
Paolina at the podium. Photo by Steve Ahlquist
Steve Ahlquist: Tesla has a bad record of
employee relations and union busting. Does that worry you at all?
Joseph Paolino: Not a bit.
Steve Ahlquist: Why not?
Joseph Paolino: Because they’re investing $10
million here, and they’re coming into the neighborhood. I’ll tell you what, if
they don’t come here and $10 million is not invested, this place is still
empty. What do we want to have? [Labor issues] are for other people. That’s
above my pay grade. That’s got nothing to do with Providence, Rhode Island.
Steve Ahlquist: You don’t think how employees
are treated has anything to do with Providence, Rhode Island?
Joseph Paolino: Today, it’s important to have a
job, and if they have a job and they’re happy with their salary, they’re happy
with their conditions, they’re going to stay. If they’re unhappy, they’re going
to leave.
Steve Ahlquist: Would you encourage a union
here?
Joseph Paolino: I’m not going to answer that for
other people. That’s not for me to answer.
Steve Ahlquist: That’s fine. I’m just wondering
because Tesla has a pretty bad labor record, and Elon Musk is not known for
being a great guy.
Joseph Paolino: I think we have to get away from
the extremes of always yelling and screaming at companies that are investing
dollars because of one or two areas. We’re not always going to be at a hundred
percent agreement; it’s just not going to happen. We’re Americans. We shouldn’t
agree on everything.
Steve Ahlquist: I understand that...
Joseph Paolino: But at the same time, just don’t
kill everything for the sake of killing and say, “Hey, we’re winning the battle
but losing the war.”
Steve Ahlquist: I’m not yelling and screaming.
I’m just asking questions.
Joseph Paolino: And I don’t want to lose the
war. $10 million being invested in this neighborhood is critically important.
Then, if somebody breaks the law or regulations, they will go through the
proper process through the Labor Relations Board, and they can be adjudicated.
That’s not up for Joey Paolino to figure out.
In March 2023, "A court upheld a finding that Tesla wrongly fired a worker involved in labor organizing and that a Twitter post by Elon Musk was illegally anti-union," according to the New York Times.
In April 2023, a United States labor board official ruled that Tesla supervisors at a Florida service center "violated United States labor law by telling employees not to discuss pay and other working conditions or bring complaints to higher level managers."
Tesla, which makes electric cars, is the only major American
auto manufacturer not represented by a union in the United States. As of
January 2023, Tesla employs over 127,000 workers across the globe. None of them
are unionized.
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