Volkswagen Workers Vote Once Again for Freedom

A car assembly line with cars in the process of being built.


The third time is a charm.  Volkswagen workers at the Chattanooga plant voted once again in favor of freedom.  The vote ran 833 opposing and 776 pushing for unionization.  According to the National Labor Relations board (NLRB) around 70 employees refrained from voting.  Union organizers seemed to ply their usual tactics – advertising and many home visits.

“The UAW couldn’t overcome Volkswagen’s pitch that workers are better off without a union dunning their paychecks for dues and perhaps making the plant less competitive,†an editorial in the Wall Street Journal observed. “Wages and benefits for production workers can add up to $23.50 an hour, which is well above the median in Chattanooga.â€

“If you lost by 29 votes, would you walk away and give up?†one United Auto Workers official observed after the votes were counted in the latest of three votes in Chattanooga.

Union spokesman Brian Rothenberg says the UAW hasn’t decided on its next step in Chattanooga. “It will be up to the workers to decide,†he tells Wards.

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