Volkswagen Group of America Chattanooga Operations, LLC (Volkswagen Chattanooga) has established a Community Organization Engagement policy that sets guidelines for interactions with labor organizations whose membership includes a significant percentage of Volkswagen Chattanooga employees, officials said Wednesday.
In order to be eligible to engage with Volkswagen under this policy, an organization must exist for the primary purpose of representing employees and their interests to employers consistent with the National Labor Relations Act.
The policy establishes "a method to assure fair and equal treatment of all groups through a process that is transparent, respectful and consistent. Its purpose is to allow eligible organizations the opportunity to engage in constructive dialogue with Volkswagen and its employees."
The United Auto Workers is continuing to see to represent local VW workers despite an earlier vote setback.
The American Council of Employees praised the new policy and expressed its belief that the announcement "will benefit ACE by establishing it as a clear choice for representing plant employees."
“It is evident that this policy is intended to present employees with a clear choice, and as we have seen over the past several weeks - hourly and salaried workers alike choose ACE,” said Sean Sean Moss, interim president of ACE in a letter sent to its members.
Mr. Moss added, “Volkswagen Chattanooga has now officially recognized the need for a local group that puts the needs and interests of its members ahead of outside political forces. The policy ensures that groups other than the UAW will have a voice.”
In a separate letter sent to Volkswagen-Chattanooga President Christian Koch and Vice President of Human Resources Sebastian Patta, ACE formally requested a “level playing field” during the upcoming period of employee organization. Specific requests included, requiring “all cards authorizing representation to be signed and dated after the announcement” of the new policy, “provision of a list stating the names… of all eligible employees,” and a “thorough, fair and transparent process” to certify authorization cards.
ACE vice president David Reed added that, “The UAW has continually lied to the employees. They want us to believe that they have Volkswagen’s support or that they’re the only option. ACE is asking the company to clear up any confusion and guarantee a totally fair process.”
“We recognize and accept that many of our employees are interested in external representation and we are putting this policy in place so that a constructive dialog is possible and available for everyone,” said Sebastian Patta, EVP of HR for Volkswagen Chattanooga.
Volkswagen has a long tradition of positive employee engagement at our plants around the world and we welcome this in our company.”
The Community Organization Engagement policy establishes three levels of engagement and commensurate opportunities relative to the Volkswagen employees represented.
Officials said, "As an organization grows, the opportunities available for access and dialog increase. Examples of opportunities available under this program include the ability to use company space for group meetings, the ability to post information and announcements, and to have regular meetings with Volkswagen management representatives."
An external auditor will be engaged to verify the percentage of a particular group’s employee membership to determine what level of engagement has been reached.
“Of course, any employee can approach Volkswagen at any time with an idea or a concern. But we wanted to extend these additional opportunities to groups of employees who want to talk with Volkswagen about issues of common interest,” said Ryan Rose, General Manager for HR Operations.