- Workers at Volkswagen's American factory in Chattanooga, Tennessee, have chosen to join the UAW union.
Last fall, the auto industry was roiled by a major, high-stakes labor dispute between American manufacturers and the UAW (United Auto Workers) union representing workers,
UAW president, Sean Fein, played hardball with manufacturers and ultimately won his bet.
The outcome of that has been watched with great interest elsewhere, not least by workers at other brands’ plants in North America and by manufacturers themselves. Several automakers have taken steps to improve the conditions of their employees to head off expansion by the UAW.
At Volkswagen’s U.S. plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, workers voted last Friday to join the union. The vote was in favor of unionization by a margin of 73%. The UAW had previously attempted unsuccessfully to unionize that plant, which now becomes the first located in the southern United States to join the union.
Clearly, the gains made last fall played a role in the outcome of the vote.
Construction of VW’s Chattanooga plant began in 2009 and operations started in 2011. The first vehicle produced there was the Passat sedan, developed for the American market. At the time, Volkswagen's goal was to significantly increase its American sales, and it understood that this required Americanized products built on American soil.
In 2015, the factory began producing the Atlas SUV, and in 2019, it expanded to handle production of electric vehicles. The ID.4 has been assembled there since 2022. The factory produces the Atlas, Atlas Cross Sport and ID4. In total, 5,500 people work in Chattanooga.
Regarding the vote, in which 83% of employees participated, Volkswagen remained neutral, choosing not to campaign against unionization. Chattanooga was the only Volkswagen plant in the world not represented by a union. The company stated that it thanked "its workers for voting in this election."
Now we’ll have to see whether employees at factories of other manufacturers follow suit.