On April 19, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) announced that workers at a Volkswagen auto plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, voted to join the United Auto Workers (UAW) union.
I hear Bernie Sanders' voice in the background excoriating the pure selfish greed of the Koch Brothers who took on non unionization as a major cause in their pursuit of inducing poverty on the masses. Here's evidence of a step toward helping those who work to make a "living" wage. And, the irony and great news: the VW corporation sees unionization "improving productivity, morale and working conditions." Wonderful report Judd and Tesnim!
"the VW corporation sees unionization "improving productivity, morale and working conditions."
Exactly Valerie! The world has moved on (or is trying to) and the good folk at Volkwagen are not dumb! They will build a superior product with a superior workforce that they helped to grow.
I'm honestly surprised VW doesn't have a horrible turnover problem. The company my husband worked for, for 25 yr at that time, decided to load up all the machines in the factory and move to Chattanooga. We sold our home up here in IL and moved to TN. After 17 months, we were selling that house, and our daughter and myself were coming back to IL. Hubs stayed for another 4 months. The company ended up being sold for parts. They weren't union, never thought about unionization. They made gas stove components, they were the number one company in the nation.
My husband was a lead set-up. Just under a supervisor. They had a horrible time keeping anyone on. Mostly due to drug screening. Sometimes he said, they simply wouldn't show up. They couldn't get product out, companies dropped their contact.
I'm glad VW is doing well. Too bad they arrived not long after we left. My husband would have had somewhere to go for work!
You ready? The new owners, an investment group, said it would be cheap labor. Claiming they could hire 2-3 people for every person up here they put out of work. Remember TN minimum wage. That wasn't what this company ever started anyone at up here. When I first met my husband, he made more in 1 week than I did bi-monthly. Not that he'd been with them longer or worked more hours either. I also was related to my employer! Anyway, back to my husband's job. This company's bigwigs thought they could hire Joe/Jane Blow off the street and they'd know how to run all the machines efficiently. Wrong. They didn't have a clue. My husband spent most of his day training, only to have them not show up next morning. It was too hard for the lil potatoes. Parts were always returned because they were manufactured wrong. Companies couldn't get their products out, that's when contracts were dropped.
It was beautiful down there. When I was told multiple times to "go home Yankee", the people started driving me nuts. I was asked where I lived. When I'd say down here, I'd get screamed at "you Yankees are stealing our jobs!". No, you stole OUR jobs. You have that ass backwards. You put over 300 people in my hometown out of work, learn facts. Funny. TN still doesn't like facts.
Autoworkers are many things, but no matter what Republican governors, the Koch network and other right wing corporate shills believe, they are not stupid. And they can see that union auto workers have higher pay, better benefits and more job security than non-union workers. And they can see VW and Mercedes paying huge salaries to executives and paying huge dividends to shareholders and they want their share.
When all else fails, claim "they" are coming for your guns. Good grief! Good for the workers. I really hope this ushers in the undoing of the Republicans' business model of poverty level wages and stock buybacks.
Are enough people waking up to republican fear-mongering, lies, corruption and moral disfunction? What a difference a brief 7 years made in the instance.
More than 40 years ago, Reagan started the process of breaking up unions to support supply-side economics, which has moved an estimated 50 trillion (don’t think people realize how big that number is) to the wealthy. Now, in year four of Joe Biden, union workers strike and win against the Big 3; union is approved in the Deep South; Ukraine support is approved in the Republican House and brought to the floor by a MAGA speaker; Trump is on trial. All of this is connected. Maybe some of the tide is turning to bringing back the positive worker economy we had before Reagan.
Shawn Fain is a real leader. He is up against the Koch Fascist network—he is at Ground Zero for the fight for democracy. Let’s hope all those mindless MAGAts discover where their actual interests lie and quit backing the people who want to see the middle class wiped out with Shock Doctrine, Libertarian fascism.
This is the beneficial reality when persons are well informed, which can cost money... that worker support groups don't have in abundance. Or...when the other side of the motivational coin is that workers are informed just enough, and finally pissed off enough from having been lied to repeatedly and abused such that they have no other option but to try out the dreaded Union.
Imagine what could result from a future of no lies, corruption and greed, on all sides, if they were to work together...
Perhaps we could focus our energies on solving the climate change issues as opposed to trying to game each others side?
This is progress for American workers. Automakers have been exploiting tax payers and workers (especially in southern states) for many years. Here in South Carolina, the governor and legislature roll out the welcome mat (and the checkbook)for any manufacturer (auto or otherwise) wanting to locate in the state. It’s not unusual to see southern states pony up millions of dollars in tax credits, for example, SC provides $1500-$25,000 credit for each new, full-time job created. Right-to-work laws make unionization efforts futile. Volkswagen is no stranger to unionized workplaces. Their manufacturing plants in Germany employ skilled laborers who are represented by IG Metall and Works Council, one of the strongest unions in the world. Unions will help grow the US middle class; already the most powerful and wealthy group of people in the world, estimated to spend $40 trillion this year.
I've read that Germany's laws about unionization played a role in the Chattanooga situation. Apparently they were worried they could be held to German labor laws for their corporate conduct in the states.
Great report. This vote made me very happy when announced. I feel very much that each of us participating and working on things to right the wrongs caused by the 1% can make a difference. I hope Alabama MB employees will follow suit.
This spirit is why I worked to get Ossof, Warnock and Fetterman elected even though I am several states away. By sending postcards, phone banking and small donations as I could and thousands of others did as well, we helped their elections.
I did so in my own state to turn the legislature blue last fall and though we have a GOP conservative Gov. we are at least a buffer towards his repressive policies.
Power to the People! Join the fight to keep our democracy.
So happy that the unions are making such great progress, even in the South! Let's hope no voter forgets this November that these proworker gains are being made under Joe Biden/a democratic administration. And please vote accordingly. Even in the South🤞
Good on UAW and workers in Tennessee! The old game of bringing new plants to the South, where they still think unions = communism is about to fail. Just as the strength of people (mostly women) refusing to be sent back to pre-Roe days, prevails over a mute SCOTUS, the southern "strategy" for Jim Crow is out of step with the 21st Century. The only way workers can achieve decent wages now is through union strength. The billionaire$ in charge are about to get their comeuppance as the proles protest with their voices, feet and votes! Just look at what the message was in Tennessee - coming for your guns! It always goes back to the fear factor. They got NOTHIN!
I'm extremely excited about the unionization of the VW plant. And as a proud Michigander, I have to defend Detroit every opportunity I get. Chattanooga and Detroit have an almost identical violent crime rate (I'm assuming they're fear mongering using Detroit's notoriety as an unsafe place) but Detroit is actually cool. Not to mention all of those UAW workers in the metro Detroit area are spreading their new income all over to area businesses.
The myth being revived is mostly about how greedy unions killed the auto industry. I’ve heard it from my brother who got an engineering degree at GMI (which GM sold … interestingly not long after they had to admit female students). My answer is GM should have done a better job negotiating. Part of it is resentment of seeing his pension whittled down until he had to retire early to save it & the rest is culture - some people deserve & contribute more than others. Union workers are getting more than their share.
I suspect the southern governors are afraid of several things … one being the organizing that the political arm of the UAW does. The govs are having trouble controlling their voters.
I love this freedom thing, which was also a line taken by the anti-union cabal (because unions are supposed to take away freedom). That is, freedom for the bosses to continue to under-pay their workers while taking home ever-larger earnings themselves. As far as I can see it's those who shout loudest about freedom in the USA who are most in favour of shutting down other people's freedoms - women's rights, LGBTQ rights, civil rights and often basic human rights - so they can impose their own definition of freedom on everyone else. In this case, not allowing freedom of association to try to restore the balance against those who hold the purse strings.
The other thing is that their short-term greed is short-sighted. The whole country (including them) does better when wealth is better spread, because when the poor begin to be able to spend more and lift themselves out of poverty, their spending goes straight back into the economy and boosts consumption all round. That's what happened in the immediate post-war until the eighties.
I hear Bernie Sanders' voice in the background excoriating the pure selfish greed of the Koch Brothers who took on non unionization as a major cause in their pursuit of inducing poverty on the masses. Here's evidence of a step toward helping those who work to make a "living" wage. And, the irony and great news: the VW corporation sees unionization "improving productivity, morale and working conditions." Wonderful report Judd and Tesnim!
"the VW corporation sees unionization "improving productivity, morale and working conditions."
Exactly Valerie! The world has moved on (or is trying to) and the good folk at Volkwagen are not dumb! They will build a superior product with a superior workforce that they helped to grow.
I'm honestly surprised VW doesn't have a horrible turnover problem. The company my husband worked for, for 25 yr at that time, decided to load up all the machines in the factory and move to Chattanooga. We sold our home up here in IL and moved to TN. After 17 months, we were selling that house, and our daughter and myself were coming back to IL. Hubs stayed for another 4 months. The company ended up being sold for parts. They weren't union, never thought about unionization. They made gas stove components, they were the number one company in the nation.
My husband was a lead set-up. Just under a supervisor. They had a horrible time keeping anyone on. Mostly due to drug screening. Sometimes he said, they simply wouldn't show up. They couldn't get product out, companies dropped their contact.
I'm glad VW is doing well. Too bad they arrived not long after we left. My husband would have had somewhere to go for work!
That is horrible Terry. What reason did the company give for that extreme and failed move? Tax incentives?
You ready? The new owners, an investment group, said it would be cheap labor. Claiming they could hire 2-3 people for every person up here they put out of work. Remember TN minimum wage. That wasn't what this company ever started anyone at up here. When I first met my husband, he made more in 1 week than I did bi-monthly. Not that he'd been with them longer or worked more hours either. I also was related to my employer! Anyway, back to my husband's job. This company's bigwigs thought they could hire Joe/Jane Blow off the street and they'd know how to run all the machines efficiently. Wrong. They didn't have a clue. My husband spent most of his day training, only to have them not show up next morning. It was too hard for the lil potatoes. Parts were always returned because they were manufactured wrong. Companies couldn't get their products out, that's when contracts were dropped.
It was beautiful down there. When I was told multiple times to "go home Yankee", the people started driving me nuts. I was asked where I lived. When I'd say down here, I'd get screamed at "you Yankees are stealing our jobs!". No, you stole OUR jobs. You have that ass backwards. You put over 300 people in my hometown out of work, learn facts. Funny. TN still doesn't like facts.
Autoworkers are many things, but no matter what Republican governors, the Koch network and other right wing corporate shills believe, they are not stupid. And they can see that union auto workers have higher pay, better benefits and more job security than non-union workers. And they can see VW and Mercedes paying huge salaries to executives and paying huge dividends to shareholders and they want their share.
When all else fails, claim "they" are coming for your guns. Good grief! Good for the workers. I really hope this ushers in the undoing of the Republicans' business model of poverty level wages and stock buybacks.
Are enough people waking up to republican fear-mongering, lies, corruption and moral disfunction? What a difference a brief 7 years made in the instance.
Stay tuned for Good News!
More than 40 years ago, Reagan started the process of breaking up unions to support supply-side economics, which has moved an estimated 50 trillion (don’t think people realize how big that number is) to the wealthy. Now, in year four of Joe Biden, union workers strike and win against the Big 3; union is approved in the Deep South; Ukraine support is approved in the Republican House and brought to the floor by a MAGA speaker; Trump is on trial. All of this is connected. Maybe some of the tide is turning to bringing back the positive worker economy we had before Reagan.
Shawn Fain is a real leader. He is up against the Koch Fascist network—he is at Ground Zero for the fight for democracy. Let’s hope all those mindless MAGAts discover where their actual interests lie and quit backing the people who want to see the middle class wiped out with Shock Doctrine, Libertarian fascism.
This is the beneficial reality when persons are well informed, which can cost money... that worker support groups don't have in abundance. Or...when the other side of the motivational coin is that workers are informed just enough, and finally pissed off enough from having been lied to repeatedly and abused such that they have no other option but to try out the dreaded Union.
Imagine what could result from a future of no lies, corruption and greed, on all sides, if they were to work together...
Perhaps we could focus our energies on solving the climate change issues as opposed to trying to game each others side?
Follow Shawn Faim and the UAW's campaign to organize Volkswagen and other autoworkers to win a living wage with this interactive visual guide.
https://thedemlabs.org/2024/04/20/volkswagen-uaw-vote-shows-power-of-organizing/
This is progress for American workers. Automakers have been exploiting tax payers and workers (especially in southern states) for many years. Here in South Carolina, the governor and legislature roll out the welcome mat (and the checkbook)for any manufacturer (auto or otherwise) wanting to locate in the state. It’s not unusual to see southern states pony up millions of dollars in tax credits, for example, SC provides $1500-$25,000 credit for each new, full-time job created. Right-to-work laws make unionization efforts futile. Volkswagen is no stranger to unionized workplaces. Their manufacturing plants in Germany employ skilled laborers who are represented by IG Metall and Works Council, one of the strongest unions in the world. Unions will help grow the US middle class; already the most powerful and wealthy group of people in the world, estimated to spend $40 trillion this year.
I've read that Germany's laws about unionization played a role in the Chattanooga situation. Apparently they were worried they could be held to German labor laws for their corporate conduct in the states.
Great report. This vote made me very happy when announced. I feel very much that each of us participating and working on things to right the wrongs caused by the 1% can make a difference. I hope Alabama MB employees will follow suit.
This spirit is why I worked to get Ossof, Warnock and Fetterman elected even though I am several states away. By sending postcards, phone banking and small donations as I could and thousands of others did as well, we helped their elections.
I did so in my own state to turn the legislature blue last fall and though we have a GOP conservative Gov. we are at least a buffer towards his repressive policies.
Power to the People! Join the fight to keep our democracy.
So happy that the unions are making such great progress, even in the South! Let's hope no voter forgets this November that these proworker gains are being made under Joe Biden/a democratic administration. And please vote accordingly. Even in the South🤞
Thank you Tesnim and Judd - great reporting and wonderful news!!
Good on UAW and workers in Tennessee! The old game of bringing new plants to the South, where they still think unions = communism is about to fail. Just as the strength of people (mostly women) refusing to be sent back to pre-Roe days, prevails over a mute SCOTUS, the southern "strategy" for Jim Crow is out of step with the 21st Century. The only way workers can achieve decent wages now is through union strength. The billionaire$ in charge are about to get their comeuppance as the proles protest with their voices, feet and votes! Just look at what the message was in Tennessee - coming for your guns! It always goes back to the fear factor. They got NOTHIN!
I'm extremely excited about the unionization of the VW plant. And as a proud Michigander, I have to defend Detroit every opportunity I get. Chattanooga and Detroit have an almost identical violent crime rate (I'm assuming they're fear mongering using Detroit's notoriety as an unsafe place) but Detroit is actually cool. Not to mention all of those UAW workers in the metro Detroit area are spreading their new income all over to area businesses.
The myth being revived is mostly about how greedy unions killed the auto industry. I’ve heard it from my brother who got an engineering degree at GMI (which GM sold … interestingly not long after they had to admit female students). My answer is GM should have done a better job negotiating. Part of it is resentment of seeing his pension whittled down until he had to retire early to save it & the rest is culture - some people deserve & contribute more than others. Union workers are getting more than their share.
I suspect the southern governors are afraid of several things … one being the organizing that the political arm of the UAW does. The govs are having trouble controlling their voters.
I love this freedom thing, which was also a line taken by the anti-union cabal (because unions are supposed to take away freedom). That is, freedom for the bosses to continue to under-pay their workers while taking home ever-larger earnings themselves. As far as I can see it's those who shout loudest about freedom in the USA who are most in favour of shutting down other people's freedoms - women's rights, LGBTQ rights, civil rights and often basic human rights - so they can impose their own definition of freedom on everyone else. In this case, not allowing freedom of association to try to restore the balance against those who hold the purse strings.
The other thing is that their short-term greed is short-sighted. The whole country (including them) does better when wealth is better spread, because when the poor begin to be able to spend more and lift themselves out of poverty, their spending goes straight back into the economy and boosts consumption all round. That's what happened in the immediate post-war until the eighties.
Absolutely the best news