Tennessee mass workers vote to join UAW, union wins historic victory | Wilnesh News

Volkswagen Workers in Chattanooga, Tenn., voted overwhelmingly to join the United Auto Workers, marking a major milestone for the union and the first time it has successfully organized an automaker outside of Detroit’s Big Three.

According to the National Labor Relations Board, which oversaw the election, unionization passed with 73 percent of the vote, or 2,628 workers supporting the UAW. The NLRB said a total of about 3,620 (about 84%) of 4,326 eligible Volkswagen workers voted in the election. Seven ballots were challenged and three others were invalid.

“The overwhelming majority of Volkswagen workers in Chattanooga, Tennessee, voted to join the UAW, a historic victory,” the union said. said in a press release Friday evening. before the NLRB releases official results. “While vote counting continues, the results are clear: Chattanooga’s Volkswagen workers are the first Southern autoworkers outside the Big Three to win a union.”

The NLRB must still certify the results, but companies must bargain with the union in good faith unless any unexpected issues or challenges arise.The meeting can proceed directly Or go through a mediator first.

Both parties have five business days to file objections to the election, according to the National Labor Relations Board. If no objection is raised, the result will be certified.

Volkswagen confirmed the UAW victory in a press release late Friday but did not offer any additional comment.

“We will await certification of the results by the NLRB,” the company stated. “Volkswagen thanks its Chattanooga workers for voting in this election.”

UAW leaders and supporters are expected to use the victory as a launching pad for an unprecedented organizing drive by the union, which includes 13 U.S. automakers, following last year’s major contracts with General Motors, Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler parent Stellantis.

President Joe Biden has thrown his weight behind organized labor and the United Auto Workers, congratulating the unions on their “historic vote.”

“Across the country, union members have scored major victories and big pay raises, including for auto workers, actors, port workers, truck drivers, writers, warehouse and health care workers, and more. Collectively, these union victories have helped boost wages , and proves once again that the middle class built America, and unions are still building and expanding it for all workers,” Biden said in a statement.

UAW President Shawn Fain and others see this week’s vote as the union’s best chance to organize Volkswagen plants following strikes and record contracts at the Detroit automaker. The agreements include significant wage increases, the restoration of cost-of-living adjustments and other benefits.

The successful organizing drive comes days after six Southern Republican governors, including Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, issued a joint statement condemning the UAW organizing drive in their states.

“We work tirelessly on behalf of our constituents to bring good-paying jobs to our state. These jobs are already part of the fabric of the auto manufacturing industry. Unionization will certainly put jobs in our state at risk — in fact, in the process , all UAW automakers have announced layoffs this year,” The statement explain.

The UAW previously failed to organize Volkswagen plants in 2014 and 2019 due to increased external political pressure and worker opposition. Five years ago, workers refused to unionize by just 833 votes to 776.

The union will now focus on negotiations with VW. It will also expect an organizing vote by Mercedes-Benz workers at an SUV plant in Vance, Alabama.

Earlier this month, workers at the plant filed paperwork with the NLRB to formally elect to join the UAW. The NLRB announced Thursday that voting for 5,200 workers will take place from May 13 to 17.

“To win, the first thing you have to do is believe you can win,” Finn tell mercedes benz workers last month. “This job can be better. Your life can be better. These things are worth fighting for. That’s why we stand up. That’s why you’re here today. Because deep down, you believe it’s possible of.

Fain has previously vowed to expand beyond the Big Three to a “Big Five or Six” by the time his four-and-a-half-year contract with the Detroit automakers expires in 2028.