Posts tagged Chattanooga
UAW Gains Southern Foothold as VW Workers Ratify First-Ever Contract
February 23, 2026 // The new deal also offers healthcare cost reductions, job security guarantees and other benefits. Volkswagen officials, as has been the case throughout the process, acknowledged the result in a short statement.
Former Chattanooga activist Chris Brooks has left his senior union post after federal monitor report
January 1, 2026 // Chris Brooks, a former Chattanooga activist and an architect of the United Auto Workers' 2024 win at Volkswagen's Chattanooga plant, has left his senior union post after a federal monitor's report said he conspired to retaliate against another union leader in an internal power struggle.
How unionizing hurt VW (it has nothing to do with wages)
December 19, 2025 // “You’ll find that the pay scales of the non-union automakers in these right-to-work states are pretty competitive with UAW,” Payne says — but in the ability to adapt to changing markets. Unions add a layer of management that makes it more difficult to shift production, change processes, and retool lines.
Shawn Fain: Future of UAW ‘hangs in the balance’ as strike looms at Volkswagen plant
November 7, 2025 // To Fain, anything shy of total job security is not good enough. The current negotiations at Volkswagen remain stalled over a clause in Volkswagen's current offer that stipulates the company will not close the plant or cut jobs "unless conditions beyond the control of the company arise that make compliance with this commitment impractical." "American workers live in fear," Fain said. "Fear that if they ask for a dollar more, the boss is going to fire them or move the damn plant. That's economic terrorism."
National Right to Work Foundation Issues Notice to VW Chattanooga Employees Impacted By UAW Boss-Ordered Strike
November 4, 2025 // Notice informs VW Team Members of their rights in light of a potential strike at Tennessee production plant
Why is UAW pushing a strike vote at Volkswagen Chattanooga?
October 28, 2025 // "We are disappointed the UAW chose to call a strike authorization vote before giving our employees a say on our strong final offer that was on the table," a Volkswagen spokesperson told The Tennessean. "Our final offer meets many of our employees' priorities and delivers strong investments in our workforce and in our plant's future."
UPDATE: Union submits counteroffer after Volkswagen makes final contract public
October 21, 2025 // The contract includes a 20% wage increase over four years, a $4,000 ratification bonus, the company’s first-ever cost-of-living allowance and lower health care costs. If approved before Oct. 31, employees would receive an additional $1,500. Employees could make nearly $80,000 each year, before overtime and benefits, according to a contract fact book released by Volkswagen. Withdrawn portions of the contract include random drug testing and a tentative agreement about onsite childcare, after disagreements on a weekly subsidy amount.
Testimony: Rachel Greszler: Labor Law Reform Part 1: Diagnosing the Issues, Exploring Current Proposals
October 10, 2025 // SummaryToday’s challenges—from the rise of artificial intelligence to the expansion of independent work and the growing demand for flexibility, autonomy, and new skills—necessitate modernized labor laws that are pro-worker and pro-employer, regardless of the type of workplace. Heavy-handed government interventions and attempts to bring back the 1950s’ ways of work are not the answers. American labor laws should preserve the freedom, dignity, and opportunity that make American work exceptional.
Editorial Board: Volkswagen Gets What It Paid For
October 7, 2025 // Company culture is one part of the story. The German auto maker is used to working with unions back home, which take part in its governance and are usually less combative than their American peers. But politics may also have pushed VW to roll over. Thirty-three Senate Democrats wrote a letter in January 2024 to every non-union auto maker in the U.S., suggesting the companies would lose electric-vehicle subsidies if they opposed union campaigns. VW, which builds an electric SUV in Chattanooga, may have decided that fighting the union would be the costlier move. Now the EV subsidies are going away in any case thanks to the GOP budget bill and Trump Administration orders.
UAW says it has received ‘overwhelming’ response to strike pledge cards in Chattanooga
September 30, 2025 // The United Auto Workers has received an "overwhelming" response from workers to pledge cards it circulated to gauge interest in a strike at Volkswagen Chattanooga, according to the union.