The NLRB election to determine if workers at the Volkswagon plant in Chattanooga Tennessee wanted to be represented by the UAW union is over. THe workers voted against union representation, but the fight is far from over. The UAW has announced they are pursuing all legal options, and they will likely file objections to the election this week. Stay tuned on that.
In the meantime, I thought it would be interesting to pull back the curtain and share a little bit about what it looks like inside an
election like this.
It’s seriously disruptive, and unsettling to your workforce and your management team. Think turmoil, fear and bitterness. Does that sound like the culture you want in play in your workplace? I didn’t think so. Far better to stay far far away from this stuff if possible, but that’s not always the case.
Look at VW. 626 employees voted for the union. 712 against. Only 89% of the workforce voted, so some people stayed on the fence or just chose to sit it out on the sidelines.
In a very non-traditional move, Volkswagon allowed union organizers on site to hold meetings with employees. VW also signed a neutrality agreement, basically agreeing to not fight the UAW organizing effort.
So how did the UAW lose?
Those 712 VW employees who didn’t want a union formed an effective, well organized resistance to the UAW/VW collusion and prevailed. They held their own meetings off-site. They evangelized their issue effectively. They used social media effectively, and they prevailed against a deck that was heavily stacked against them.
Their website is robust, and very interesting to read if you want to see more detail on this entire campaign. No2UAW.com. They also have a Facebook community with over 500 members called “no2UAW” which is open to the public. Go check them out.
What follows below is a clipped portion from the No2UAW website. It’s a listing by title only (no links) to some of the materials distributed to VW employees by the Vote No group during the campaign. You can get to the links by clicking through to No2UAW.
HANDOUTS
Print these off and circle the parts you want any disbelieving co-worker to understand. These are undisputable facts. Use them as a wake-up call to those who have sweetly lied to.
_____ _____ _____ _____ _____ _____
The UAW is a Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing – The UAW has told us a lot of things that just are not true.
Your Legal Rights and Will History Repeat Itself? – We already have rights that the UAW says they can give us. Westmoreland, NUMMI and Spring Hill believed them, It did not go well.
Set One – Top Questions We Deserve Answers to Before We Vote
Set Two – More Top Questions We Deserve Answers to Before We Vote
Making an Informed Decision about UAW at VW Chattanooga – Q&A sheet
UAW Promises vs. Reality – Wage Info. Ask them to put it in writing and sign this sheet!
Top Ten Reasons to Vote No 2 the UAW
Articles to Print Off
German auto union splits GM-Opel workforce –
German union seals shutdown of GM-Opel’s Bochum plant –
UAW chief stabs German Opel workers in the back –
Germany: A new capitulation by the IG Metall union to Opel management –
Should Volkswagen fear unionization at its Chattanooga plant? –
Volkswagen Chattanooga: VW management believed to be split over UAW –
No related posts.
