Volkswagen Tennessee Workers Overwhelmingly Approve First UAW Contract

On Thursday, local time in the United States, workers at Volkswagen’s Chattanooga, Tennessee assembly plant overwhelmingly approved—by a 96% majority—their first labor agreement negotiated by the United Auto Workers (UAW). This marks the plant’s first formal contract with the UAW since the union was established there in 2014 and represents a significant achievement for UAW President Shawn Fain in his push to unionize non-traditional automakers. The ratification of this agreement signifies a critical breakthrough for the UAW in its efforts to secure labor rights at historically non-unionized automotive manufacturing facilities in the U.S. South.