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Season 6, Episode 33

Volkswagen negotiations and organizing updates from UAW Region 8

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Guest Name:


Tim Smith

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UAW Region 8 

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Tim Smith, Director of Region 8 of the United Auto Workers (UAW), joined America's Work Force Union Podcast to discuss ongoing negotiations with Volkswagen, organizing efforts at the BlueOval SK battery plant in Kentucky and concerns about funding cuts to the National Institute of Health (NIH).

Smith provided an update on negotiations between the UAW and Volkswagen in Chattanooga, Tenn., noting that while 80 percent of demands have been met, significant hurdles remain in wages, healthcare and retirement benefits. The UAW is pushing for a 24 percent wage increase, while Volkswagen has offered 16.5 percent. Smith emphasized the union's goal is to pattern the agreement after recent successful negotiations with the Big Three automakers, despite Volkswagen's claims of financial constraints. He also highlighted the importance of setting internal deadlines to keep negotiations moving forward.

Organizing efforts at the BlueOval SK battery plant, located just outside Elizabethtown, Ky., face significant challenges due to aggressive anti-union tactics employed by the company. Smith explained that while 30 percent of workers have signed union cards, the company is arguing against holding an election until the plant reaches full capacity. The situation is further complicated by the current state of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which has been effectively dismantled. Smith stressed the importance of worker safety as the primary concern driving unionization efforts at the plant.

Smith then expressed deep concern about proposed funding cuts to the National Institute of Health (NIH), describing them as "a gut punch to scientific progress, economic growth and the fight against deadly diseases." He highlighted the potential impact on research for cancer, heart disease and other critical health issues. Smith also discussed the broader implications of recent political developments, including the firing of NLRB members and how they could potentially impact labor law enforcement and workers' rights across the country.

Listen to the full episode for more insights from Smith on the challenges and opportunities facing the UAW and the broader labor movement.


America’s Work Force is the only daily labor podcast in the US and has been on the air since 1993, supplying listeners with useful, relevant input into their daily lives through fact-finding features, in-depth interviews, informative news segments and practical consumer reports. America’s Work Force is committed to providing an accessible venue in which America's workers and their families can hear discussion on important, relevant topics such as employment, healthcare, legislative action, labor-management relations, corporate practices, finances, local and national politics, consumer reports and labor issues.

America’s Work Force Union Podcast is brought to you in part by our sponsors: AFL-CIO, American Federation of Government Employees, American Federation of Musicians Local 4, Alliance for American Manufacturing, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes-IBT, Boyd Watterson, Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council, Communication Workers of America, Mechanical Insulators Labor Management Cooperative Trust, International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers Local 50, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Crafts, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 6, Ironworkers Great Lakes District Council, Melwood, The Labor Citizen newspaper, Laborers International Union of North America, The National Labor Office of Blue Cross and Blue Shield, North Coast Area Labor Federation, Ohio Federation of Teachers, United Labor Agency, United Steelworkers.

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