United States/Volkswagen runs into difficulties with the United Auto Workers UAW union. In a decision handed down on 13 April, the National Labor Relations Board, in charge of supervising union elections and investigating violations of the National Labor Relations Act, confirmed the decision given by its regional office that had supported a vote by VW maintenance staff to join a union at the Chattanooga facility (c.f. article No. 9404). The staff had voted 71% in favor of joining the UAW auto union. Management had been opposed to the vote by this category of worker, fearing this would fragment staff representation according to professional groups. Management argued that this relatively small group was not distinct enough from other plant workers to warrant representation as a separate unit.
The NLRB decision follows on from recent jurisprudence giving wider possibilities for unions to negotiate on behalf of small groups of workers within a company once certain criteria are respected (legal precedent on ‘micro bargaining units’). The NLRB judged that this legal precedent applied because the plant’s maintenance workers 1) are easily identifiable as comprising a group and 2) share a similar function, skills and qualifications with supervision and working conditions that are different to other workers as well as different remuneration and working hours, including a dedicated HR manager. The UAW took immediate steps to request specific negotiations for this category of workers.
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