We would have hoped Wacker Chemie might have learned something from the scandal of its fellow German-headquartered company Volkswagen.
When the automobile manufacturer’s emissions-cheating scandal came to life in September 2015, the company said the scandal was “the mistakes of a few people,” that its emissions defeat devices may not have been illegal in Europe and that “we didn’t lie” to American regulators before the scandal came to light. All were false.
Those statements were made in addition to the fact the self-proclaimed environmentally friendly company sold cars to millions of people knowing they were polluting the atmosphere more than they said they did.
Since then, of course, Volkswagen has tried to make things right with its customers and in its public relations image, but it undoubtedly has lost some customers for good.
The Wacker chemical company in Charleston, Tenn., like Volkswagen’s manufacturing plant here in Chattanooga, is a large employer. We appreciate its location here, its contributions to the community and the economic impact it makes.