DeepSummary
The United Auto Workers union spent over 10 years attempting to unionize the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, but faced multiple failed campaigns due to interference from politicians, legal battles over the definition of a 'micro-unit,' timing issues with changes in federal labor policies, and a corruption scandal within the UAW itself. Despite these obstacles, the workers eventually voted to unionize in 2023 after a new UAW president took a more transparent approach and Volkswagen remained neutral during the election process.
In the first unionization attempt in 2014, influential politicians like Senator Bob Corker actively campaigned against the union, suggesting that a 'no' vote could lead to further investment and jobs from Volkswagen. This interference likely swayed some workers to vote against the union. The UAW then tried forming a smaller 'micro-unit' of skilled workers, which initially succeeded but got bogged down in legal battles over its validity and stalled under changing federal labor policies.
A third campaign in 2019 was hampered by a UAW corruption scandal that made workers wary of aligning with the union. However, a new UAW president in 2023, Sean Fain, took a transparent approach to negotiations that resonated with workers. Coupled with Volkswagen's neutrality in the latest election, this finally allowed the UAW to win the unionization vote at the Chattanooga plant in 2023 after over a decade of efforts.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- Political interference from influential figures can sway union elections, as demonstrated by Senator Corker's remarks ahead of the 2014 Volkswagen vote.
- Inconsistent federal labor policies and legal battles over technicalities like "micro-units" can derail unionization efforts for years, as seen in the UAW's struggles.
- Scandals and corruption within unions can seriously undermine support among potential members during campaigns, like the UAW faced in 2019.
- Transparency from union leadership in negotiations can resonate with workers and offset previous missteps, helping enable successful unionization.
- Neutrality from companies rather than anti-union campaigning can create a fairer environment for workers to decide on unionization.
- Regional politics and a "right-to-work" environment can make unionization extremely difficult, even when companies are open to unions.
- Persistence over many years and changing tactics when faced with setbacks were ultimately required for the UAW's success in Chattanooga.
- Unionization of foreign automakers establishing plants in the South has proven extremely challenging for U.S. unions until this Volkswagen breakthrough.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “They've politicized it. That's the biggest one that I've seen where they're saying, well, if you vote in favor of union, you're a Democrat. And I'm like, no, that's not true. That has nothing to do with anything inside my workplace.“ by Steve Cochran
- “The UAW leadership saw Volkswagen as their best opportunity.“ by Steven Silvia
- “Shawn is different because he is so transparent and Honest with everyone. That's the thing that we like best about him.“ by Steve Cochran
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Episode Information
Planet Money
NPR
4/24/24
Union membership in the U.S. has been declining for decades. But, in 2022, support for unions among Americans was the highest it's been in decades. This dissonance is due, in part, to the difficulties of one important phase in the life cycle of a union: setting up a union in the first place. One place where that has been particularly clear is at the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Back in 2008, Volkswagen announced that they would be setting up production in the United States after a 20-year absence. They planned to build a new auto manufacturing plant in Chattanooga.
Volkswagen has plants all over the world, all of which have some kind of worker representation, and the company said that it wanted that for Chattanooga too. So, the United Auto Workers, the union that traditionally represents auto workers, thought they would be able to successfully unionize this plant.
They were wrong.
In this episode, we tell the story of the UAW's 10-year fight to unionize the Chattanooga plant. And, what other unions can learn from how badly that fight went for labor.
This episode was hosted by Amanda Aronczyk and Nick Fountain. It was produced by Willa Rubin. It was engineered by Josephine Nyounai, fact-checked by Sierra Juarez, and edited by Keith Romer. Alex Goldmark is our executive producer.
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