UAW Moves Swiftly to Capitalize on Historic Volkswagen Union Victory

The United Auto Workers (UAW) union is wasting no time in leveraging its groundbreaking organizing win at Volkswagen's plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee. UAW president Shawn Fain said the union is moving quickly to build on the momentum from the VW victory, which marked the first time the Detroit-based union has successfully organized a foreign-owned auto plant in the U.S. South.

In the vote, 73% of eligible workers at the Chattanooga plant supported UAW representation. The plant, which builds the Volkswagen ID.4, Atlas, and Atlas Cross Sport models, employs about 1,700 hourly workers. Fain said the goal is to align the expiration of the future VW contract with the UAW's contracts with the Detroit Three automakers, which are set to expire on May 1, 2028.

The UAW has set aside $40 million for an organizing blitz targeting 14 nonunion auto plants across the country. After the VW win, seen as the easiest nonunion factory to organize, the UAW is setting its sights on bigger targets like Toyota and Tesla. Experts say a victory at Tesla would be the biggest possible prize for the U.S. labor movement.

The union has also seen growing interest from workers at a Toyota plant in Kentucky and has launched new organizing drives at a Hyundai plant in Alabama and a Toyota parts factory in Missouri. Fain believes the recent labor deals he negotiated with the Detroit automakers, which included significant wage increases and other gains, were critical to winning support for the union in Tennessee.

Why this matters: The UAW's victory at Volkswagen could be a turning point for the labor movement in the U.S. auto industry, especially in the union-resistant South. The win may inspire workers at other foreign automakers to seek UAW representation, potentially leveling the playing field with the unionized Detroit automakers.

The organizing efforts are expected to face stiff opposition from Republican politicians and right-to-work advocates in the South, who have touted the region's low labor costs and "business-friendly" environment to attract auto manufacturing jobs. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and other GOP leaders had strongly opposed the UAW campaign at Volkswagen. However, Fain remains undeterred, saying the VW vote shows "when workers have a free and fair choice, they will choose the UAW and a collective bargaining agreement." The union's next test will come in May, when workers at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Tuscaloosa, Alabama vote on UAW representation.

Key Takeaways

• UAW wins historic organizing victory at VW plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
• UAW plans to leverage VW win to organize 14 more nonunion auto plants.
• UAW aims to align VW contract with Detroit 3 automakers' contracts expiring in 2028.
• UAW victory at Tesla would be a major prize for the U.S. labor movement.
• UAW faces opposition from Republican politicians and right-to-work advocates in the South.