The United Auto Workers (UAW) announced on Friday that workers at Volkswagen’s Chattanooga, Tennessee plant have voted to join the union. This is a big deal because it’s the first time the UAW has successfully organized workers at a car company outside of the Big Three in Detroit.
The vote was overwhelmingly in favor of joining the union, with 73% of workers voting for it. Out of around 4,326 eligible workers, about 84% voted, with 2,628 voting for the union. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) oversaw the election.
Even though the result still needs to be officially certified by the NLRB, Volkswagen is required to negotiate with the union in good faith once it’s certified. This means they have to talk about things like pay and working conditions.
President Joe Biden congratulated the UAW on their success, showing his support for labor unions. He said that unions help workers get better pay and improve their lives.
The UAW sees this victory as a step forward in their efforts to organize workers at other car companies in the U.S. They’ve had success with General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler in the past year.
The vote comes after a lot of effort from the UAW to organize workers at the Volkswagen plant. They’ve tried twice before, in 2014 and 2019, but didn’t succeed. This time, they had more support from workers and were able to overcome opposition from politicians.
Now, the UAW will focus on negotiating with Volkswagen. They’re also getting ready for another vote at a Mercedes-Benz plant in Alabama. They hope to keep expanding and organizing workers at more car companies in the future.
