Mike Burton stands in front of the new location of the American Council of Employees headquarters off Bonny Oaks Drive near Volkswagen in Chattanooga in this Nov. 11, 2014, photo.A rival labor group to the United Auto Workers at Volkswagen’s Chattanooga plant said Saturday it expects to have signed up at least 15 percent, and perhaps as many as 30 percent, of the workforce as members by late January.
The American Council of Employees plans next month to turn over names of its members to VW, which will have signatures verified by an independent auditor, ACE supporters said Saturday after a meeting at the group’s headquarters.
Then, the group will gain some, but not all, of the rights to formally talk with company officials and meet inside the plant which the UAW garnered last week in accordance with a new plant policy.
The auditor said UAW membership hit at least 45 percent, triggering such rights as bi-weekly meetings with the plant’s executive committee.
If ACE hits a significant number of members, the labor group said it doesn’t believe VW will grant the UAW exclusive representation of the plant’s workforce.
“We don’t believe the company will do that,”said Kay Fiorello, a VW employee and ACE supporter.
See complete story in Sunday’s Times Free Press.