Workers at Tennessee VW plant file for union election, according to UAW

Workers at the Volkswagen plant in Tennessee have filed a petition to join the United Auto Workers (UAW), according to an announcement made by the union. This marks a significant milestone in the UAW’s efforts to organize nonunionized auto plants in the U.S. The UAW has previously struggled to organize foreign-based automakers, including Volkswagen and Nissan. In 2019, VW workers at the Chattanooga plant rejected union representation in a vote.

The Chattanooga plant is VW’s only U.S. assembly plant and employs over 4,000 autoworkers who would be eligible to vote for union representation. VW has confirmed that it has received a notice about the petition and will support an NLRB vote to allow every team member to vote in privacy. The company stated that it respects its workers’ right to a democratic process and to organize.

VW production workers at the plant currently earn between $23.40 and $32.40 per hour, with a four-year grow-in period to top wages. These hourly wages are lower than those negotiated by the UAW with the Detroit automakers last year, which range between about $25 and $36 per hour for production workers. By the end of the UAW contracts, top wages are expected to surpass $42 per hour for production workers.

The UAW has targeted 13 nonunion automakers in the U.S., including BMW, Honda, Hyundai, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Tesla, Toyota, and Volvo. The union’s organizing drive covers nearly 150,000 autoworkers across these companies.

Overall, the filing of the petition by VW workers at the Tennessee plant represents a significant development in the UAW’s efforts to expand its presence in nonunionized auto plants in the U.S. The outcome of the upcoming vote will have implications for both the workers and VW as they navigate issues related to wages, working conditions, and collective bargaining.