UAW May Challenge Volkswagen Vote Results

Photo Credit: Detroit Free PressUAW leaders on Friday said they will review all of their legal options and consider challenging the results of a devastating defeat in an election for union representation at Volkswagen’s plant in Chattanooga, Tenn.

Workers at the German automakers plant voted against the UAW in a three-day election that ended Friday in a margin of 712-626.

UAW President Bob King sharply criticized Tennessee politicians who he said scared workers away from voting in favor of union representation. Going into the election, the UAW thought it had support from a majority of the more than 1,500 workers who had an opportunity to vote.

That support began to decline in recent days, mostly because of news conferences held by the state’s political leaders who warned that a vote in favor of the UAW would make the state less attractive to other manufacturers and could jeopardize Volkswagen’s plans to expand its factory there.