UAW wins big at Volkswagen in Tennessee – becoming the primary foreign factory within the American South to unionize

A decisive majority of Volkswagen staff Workers at a factory in Chattanooga, Tennessee, voted to hitch the United Auto Workers union. the German automaker announced on April 19, 2024.

Convincing all auto staff within the South to hitch a union has long been one in every of the U.S. labor movement's biggest challenges, despite sustained efforts by the UAW to prepare this workforce.

Of course, the UAW already has members employed by Ford and General Motors at facilities in Kentucky, Texas, Missouri and Mississippi.

However, that’s The union had tried before and largely failed To Organize staff at foreign corporations, including Volkswagen and Nissan, in southern states – roughly where 30% of all U.S. automotive jobs are situated. It was the UAW third selection in the identical factory since 2014. The previous two ended with narrow losses.

The victory follows the UAW's most successful strike in a generation against Detroit's big three automakers, winning higher wages and higher advantages for its members in 2023.

Volkswagen has said it should be so waiting for confirmation of the outcomes by the National Labor Relations Board, the federal agency accountable for enforcing U.S. staff' right to freedom of association. As long as neither side challenges the outcomes inside five business days, the NLRB will confirm them, giving the green light to start negotiating a contract.

The union has one other election is already planned This will occur lower than a month after the Volkswagen vote. More than 5,000 staff in Mercedes-Benz plant in Vance, Alabamawill resolve whether to hitch the UAW in a vote May 13-17, 2024.

$40 million campaign

The UAW has has pledged to spend $40 million by 2026 expand its ranks to incorporate more staff within the automotive and electric battery industries, including many employees within the southwhere the industry is gain ground quickly.

Based on my five many years of experience as a Union organizer and labor historianI expect that, apart from the recent momentum, the UAW will face resistance from the opposite foreign automakers operating within the South. The There can also be headwind from politicians within the SouthMany of them have expressed concerns that the UAW's success would undermine the region's rigorously crafted approach to economic development.

But the outcomes of this primary election among the many greater than 4,300 Volkswagen staff eligible to vote in Tennessee represent a robust first step within the union's ambitious campaign to prepare foreign automakers within the South and other non-union factories across the country. With about 73% of staff who voted selected to say “yes.”“According to the corporate and other sources, I imagine this historic victory will boost UAW organizing within the South and can likely encourage other staff in search of to unionize of their workplaces.

Praise for the “perfect three-legged stool”

After the region was previously robust The textile industry imploded In the Nineteen Eighties and Nineteen Nineties, driven by the influx of low-cost imports, Southern business and political leaders revitalized the region's manufacturing base by successfully recruiting foreign automakers.

The strategy of those leaders reflects what the Alabama Economic Council has described it as a “perfect three-legged stool for economic development.” It consists of “an eager and trainable workforce with a work ethic unparalleled in the country,” accompanied by a “low-cost and business-friendly economic climate and a lack of union activity and participation.”

The prospect of low-paid and reliable staff is there attracted corporations like Nissan and BMWMercedes-Benz, Kia, Honda, Volkswagen and Hyundai within the south in recent many years.

Although lots of these corporations negotiate constructively Because unions are energetic of their home country, the shortage of union membership and associated protections within the United States proved to be a draw for them.

Blame unions for poor employment prospects

One way auto employers within the South have blocked unions is: They are portrayed as outdated institutions whose bloated contracts and strict labor rules destroy jobs by making domestic auto corporations competitive.

Automotive executives within the South argue that the region has developed an alternate labor relations model offers flexibility to managementprovides wages and advantages higher than those previously earned by local staff and frees staff from any subordination to union policies.

Automakers with plants within the South are also drawing on one other powerful resource to withstand the UAW: public intervention by senior elected officials.

Issue dire warnings

As the UAW redoubles its organizing efforts, Southern governors are once more sounding the alarm.

On the eve of the Volkswagen election in Chattanooga six of those governors issued a joint statement denouncing the UAW as a “special interest” that might “endanger our jobs and the values ​​we live by.” They claimed that voting for the UAW would undermine its ability to draw automakers and “halt growth.”

The UAW counters that union membership means staff receive predictable raises. higher advantages and improved workplace policies.

While these arguments from anti-union politicians haven't modified much over time, the context definitely has.

The The UAW's great successes in wages and advantages The strike against General Motors, Ford and Stellantis in 2023 has increased the corporate's influence and credibility.

Many automakers whose U.S. staff aren’t covered by the UAW — including Volkswagen, Honda, Hyundai and other foreign transplants — responded by raising wages at their plants within the South. The union rightly describes these salary increases as “UAW bump.”

The UAW cites these wage increases in its outreach to staff at Tesla and other non-union corporations.

“Non-union auto workers are being left behind.” the UAW recruiting website warns. “Are you ready to stand up and win your fair share?”

The pitch continues: “It’s time for non-union auto workers to join the UAW and demand economic justice at Toyota, Honda, Hyundai, Tesla, Nissan, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Subaru, Volkswagen, Mazda, Rivian, Lucid, Volvo and beyond that.”

Some auto staff within the south were now too Express concerns about schedulingSafety, two-tier pay systems and workloads that they imagine a union could help solve.

It can also be clear that they’ve been encouraged by the successes that UAW members have achieved.

At full speed

The UAW's campaign is just gaining momentum. And the timing is right.

A 2023 National Labor Relations Board Decision offers unions additional influence on this process. If management doesn’t comply with the union's request for recognition, the employer could be required to hunt an election for NLRB representation.

To win, unions typically need a majority of voters. However, in accordance with the brand new ruling, if management is found to have interfered with staff' rights throughout the election process, this could possibly be the case obliged to barter with the union.

The UAW says it’s ongoing Organized campaigns in greater than two dozen other non-union workplacesincluding factories owned by Hyundai in Montgomery, Alabama, and Toyota in Troy, Missouri.

I imagine there may be rather a lot at stake for all staff, not only those within the automotive industry.

As D. Taylor, President of Unite Herea union representing staff in a big selection of occupations recently stated, “If you change the South, you change America.”

This is an updated version of an article published on March 8, 2024.