Anti-union group questions UAW promises to VW workers in Chattanooga

photo Workers assemble Volkswagen Passat sedans at the German automaker's plant in Chattanooga.
photo United Auto Workers, UAW, logo

An anti-United Auto Workers group today said the union is making promises to Volkswagen plant workers in Chattanooga which it may not be able to keep.

Since last Monday, Volkswagen workers have been approached by UAW organizers and implying the union will get them up to $28 per hour, as well as citing Ford Motor Co. bonuses of $8,000, according to the nonprofit group Southern Momentum.

"I hope VW management in Germany and here in Chattanooga realize if they do not plan to honor the UAW's promises and the UAW fails deliver on those promises, there will be a lot of angry team members who will feel they were misled," said Travis Finnell, a VW employee, in a statement.

The group cited a UAW flyer that said VW workers make less than they would make under a UAW contract.

Yet, according to the group, nowhere on the flyer does the UAW acknowledge that the Chattanooga plant is less than three years old and VW's workers make more than those with similar time on the job at Chrysler, Ford and GM.

See more in Saturday's Times Free Press.

Upcoming Events