XPost: ba.politics, dc.media, soc.penpals   
   XPost: alt.burningman   
   From: dickskinner@uaw.org   
      
   NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Employees at the Volkswagen plant in   
   Chattanooga, Tenn., are voting whether they want to be   
   represented by the United Auto Workers union. With a three-day   
   election wrapping up Friday, here's a look at what's at stake:   
      
   ORGANIZING THE TRANSPLANTS: Volkswagen was the first foreign   
   automaker to build a plant in the United States in 1976, and UAW   
   got off to a promising start by gaining representation of   
   workers there. But sluggish sales, quality problems and labor   
   tension caused the German automaker to shutter the plant in   
   southwestern Pennsylvania in 1988. The UAW has failed in its   
   efforts to represent workers at more successful U.S. plants   
   operated by the likes of Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Mercedes and   
   BMW. Today, a Mitsubishi plant in Normal, Ill., is the only   
   foreign automaker represented by the UAW, dating back to when it   
   began as a joint venture with Chrysler in 1988.   
      
   UAW FUTURE: Bob King, the union's president, has said the UAW's   
   long-term future is directly tied to whether it can organize   
   plants outside of Detroit's Big Three. UAW membership peaked at   
   1.5 million 1979, before the boom of foreign auto manufacturing   
   concentrated in the South. The union's membership stood at   
   382,513 in 2012, a slight improvement over the lows experienced   
   during the depths of auto industry bailout amid the Great   
   Recession, but far from the numbers it needs to thrive.   
      
   POLITICAL PUSHBACK: Republican politicians in the South have   
   been vocal opponents of the UAW's organization drive at   
   Volkswagen, fearing a union foothold there could expand to other   
   plants and make the region less attractive to manufacturers.   
   U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, a former Chattanooga mayor, has said   
   Volkswagen would become a "laughingstock" for engaging in   
   discussions with the UAW.   
      
   WORKS COUNCIL: Labor interests who make up half of the   
   supervisory board at Volkswagen's headquarters in Wolfsburg,   
   Germany, have questioned why the Chattanooga facility is alone   
   among the company's major plants around the world without formal   
   worker representation. The company wants to create a German-   
   style "works council" in which both blue collar and salaried   
   employees have a say over working conditions. But Volkswagen   
   says U.S. law won't permit the creation of a works council   
   without the involvement of an independent union.   
      
   VOLKSWAGEN EXPANSION: Volkswagen has announced that it will   
   build a new midsized SUV for the U.S. market to try resurrect   
   flagging domestic sales, and that Chattanooga is competing with   
   a Mexican plant to produce it. The company has stressed that   
   cost considerations — and not the union vote — will decide where   
   the SUV is built. But Republican state lawmakers added a twist   
   to those considerations this week by warning that crucial state   
   incentives to expand the plant could be at risk if the UAW wins   
   the election.   
      
   http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/5-things-to-know-about-the-   
   UAW-vote-at-Volkswagen-5232579.php   
      
   If unions weren't so corrupt and greedy, they might be more   
   attractive.   
      
       
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)