Bernd Osterloh, right, head of the Volkswagen workers council, stands next to CEO Martin Winterkorn at the Volkswagen workers’ meeting in Wolfsburg, Germany.Gov. Bill Haslam had a “frank and open conversation” Thursday with a top German labor official who has voiced support for a works council labor board at Volkswagen’s Chattanooga plant, a Haslam spokesman says.
Spokesman David Smith said the governor met in Nashville with Bernd Osterloh, who heads VW’s global works council, and other officials in Haslam’s state Capitol office.
The meeting took place after Osterloh and other German VW officials visited the automaker’s Chattanooga plant. There, they gathered both with top managers and select workers, said employees.
In addition, Osterloh met with U.S. Sen. Bob Corker of Chattanooga, who along with Haslam, has voiced opposition to unionizing the plant.
“The governor and they [Osterloh] had a frank and open conversation,” Smith said in a statement. “They have a tradition of works councils in their facilities, and the governor shared his concern about the impact of UAW [United Auto Workers union] on the state’s ability to recruit other companies to Tennessee.”