The autoworkers union accused Volkswagen of violating the law Monday for appealing a decision by federal labor officials not to review a contested workplace election.
The United Auto Workers (UAW) successfully unionized a subgroup of 164 skilled workers Dec. 4 at the Tennessee Volkswagen plant. Volkswagen has adamantly opposed the election but the request to review it was dismissed by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The automaker is now looking to appeal the decision, but the union claims such an appeal would be illegal.
“[We] will continue our effort to allow everyone to vote as one group on the matter of union representation,” a Volkswagen representative said in an email to The Daily Caller News Foundation. “We are disappointed that the NLRB declined to fully evaluate this important question. Therefore, Volkswagen will take the necessary steps to have this issue reviewed by a federal court of appeal.”
The NLRB is not the final judicial entity when it comes to workplace complaints and appeals of decisions are not uncommon.
“The NLRB issued a clear decision supporting efforts among Volkswagen skilled-trades employees to secure meaningful representation in Chattanooga,” UAW Secretary-Treasurer Gary Casteel said in a statement. “By choosing to fight the NLRB, Volkswagen is in clear violation of federal law.”
Casteel adds the union has requested the NLRB issue an unfair labor practice complaint against Volkswagen. Volkswagen was originally open to the idea of a unionized workforce but doesn’t want the plant split between union and nonunion workers.
“If Volkswagen tries to force this matter into the federal court of appeals, we see it as a stall tactic that won’t work,” Casteel continued. “We reject the company’s claim that recognizing and bargaining with the skilled-trades employees would somehow splinter the workforce in Chattanooga.”
Volkswagen has advocated for a full vote of the more than 1,400 plant workers. The UAW began turning its attention to those workers it could unionize when it became clear it couldn’t get the majority to agree to being represented. Local 42 was even started as a volunteer union so those workers in the minority that did want representation could join its ranks.
“If Volkswagen wants meaningful employee representation, the company is free to recognize the local union as the representative of its members, as it committed to do previously,” Casteel said. “It is unacceptable that the Chattanooga plant is the only facility not represented on the Volkswagen Global Group Works Council, the influential body of employee leaders from around the world.”
There has also been concern over the timing of the unionization drive. The American Council of Employees (ACE) in a letter Dec. 3 expressed concern the union was trying to take advantage of the Volkswagen emissions scandal. ACE has positioned itself as an alternative to the UAW. The group also opposes the idea of organizing subgroups of workers.
“At a time when Volkswagen already has run afoul of the federal and state governments in the emissions-cheating scandal, we’re disappointed that the company now is choosing to thumb its nose at the federal government over U.S. labor law,” Casteel concluded. “At the end of the day, the employees are the ones being cheated by Volkswagen’s actions.”
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) alleges the company intentionally programmed car engines to not properly detect emissions. About a month after the EPA complaint, the union filed paperwork with the NLRB seeking a union election. The scandal has garnered the automaker international backlash.
The UAW and Volkswagen did not respond to requests for comment by The Daily Caller News Foundation.
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