UAW Appeals Volkswagen Union Vote

 Time for pushback:

After a narrow and devastating loss at the Chattanooga Volkswagen plant last week, the United Auto Workers union has asked the federal labor board to set aside the election results because of "a firestorm of interference" from outside groups and politicians, including Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn). 

The union submitted its appeal to the National Labor Relations Board on Friday, according to a UAW press release. Labor board officials will now have to consider whether the statements by lawmakers interfered enough to potentially sway votes and taint the election. The board could essentially order a do-over. 

In its 13-page appeal, the UAW said that "threats" made by Tennessee lawmakers were "clearly designed to influence the votes" of Volkswagen workers, who eventually voted 712-to-626 against UAW representation last week. The appeal cites Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam (R), state Senate Speaker Bo Watson (R) and Corker, among others.

Now, thanks to a 3-2 Democrat edge on the NLRB, maybe the UAW will get another chance to organize this plant (and get a needed foothold in the plantation South).

Republicans Keep Big Government Out Of ... Huh, What?

Obama Addresses UAW Convention

Here's a clip from President Obama's address to the United Auto Workers convention in Washington, D.C. today, wherein he applies a blowtorch to Rethuglican asses:



(MSNBC, via TPM)

"Destroying What the UAW Built"

The WaPo editorial page has a fine op/ed by Harold Meyerson on the Rethug efforts to sabotage an auto industry bailout. As we recently pointed out, Rethug senators - mostly from the South, where unions are anathema- have been working to blow-up any agreement to provide a bridge loan to automakers that doesn't include punitive cuts in auto worker wages. Here's what Meyerson says about these neo-Hooverites:

"In a broad sense, they want to destroy the institution [the UAW] that did more than any other to raise American living standards, and they want to do it by using the power of government to lower American living standards -- in the middle of the most severe recession since the 1930's. The auto workers deserve better, and so does the nation they did so much to build."

Amen.