Tennessee Volkswagen Employees Join Union in Landslide Vote

Employees at a Volkswagen factory in Tennessee voted for union representation by an overwhelming margin of 2,628 to 985 in the first union election win in the South in nearly 100 years and the first time that a foreign-owned factory in that region has unionized.

Third time’s the charm: The UAW had twice before tried to organize the Chattanooga factory, narrowly losing an election there as recently as 2019. This time around, the union claimed it had obtained support of more than 70% of employees in the weeks leading up to the election. That number increased in the election itself with 78% of the votes cast for the union. 

Employer “neutrality”: Volkswagen pledged to be “neutral but not silent” during the campaign, emphasizing that it would speak up only to call out “misinformation.” Predictably, the UAW filed multiple unfair labor practice charges against the automaker during the campaign, alleging unlawful intimidation, interference, and work rules. Under the Board’s new Cemex framework, Volkswagen may have had to recognize the union even if they had lost the election. 

Momentum building: In less than six months, the UAW has secured lucrative contracts with each of the Big Three U.S. automakers and an election win at Volkswagen. The results reflect not only the UAW’s particular resurgence but a renewed wave of organizing activity and collective action that continues to sweep across the United States. A pro-labor presidential administration, new rules from the NLRB tilting the playing field heavily in favor of unions, and rising employee voice have all played major roles in this trend – union election win and organizing rates remain stable year over year. 

On the other hand... It’s not all roses for the UAW. While the union celebrated its win at the Volkswagen Chattanooga plant, a small unit of workers at a Nissan parts distribution center in New Jersey voted to oust the union in a decertification vote of 37-17. The UAW’s contract with Nissan had expired weeks before. 

What’s next? The UAW now has its sights set on a Mercedes factory in Alabama. This is more than an attempt to simply get more dues-paying members. The union also seeks to avoid future concession bargaining by leveling the playing field on wages and benefits throughout the industry. Fresh off its collective bargaining wins in Detroit, the union has made no secret of its strategy to organize previously union-free automakers. With one down, and one directly in the crosshairs, functional sectoral bargaining for U.S. auto workers may not be too far off on the horizon – will this strategy be copied in other industries?