We’ve won our union. Now, we’re getting ready to win a strong first contract that reflects our demands and raises standards at our plant.
Our Path to a First Contract Starts with Electing our Bargaining Team
Bargaining Committee
This table shows who we have elected to represent us in our negotiations with management.
| Assembly – 1st Shift – 2 Committee Members | |
| Billy Quigg | |
| Yogi Peoples | |
| Assembly – 2nd Shift – 2 Committee Members | |
| Michael Bromley | |
| Isaac Meadows | |
| Assembly – 3rd Shift – 2 Committee Members | |
| Lisa Elliott (Ms. Lisa) | |
| Josh Epperson | |
| Battery – All Shifts – 1 Committee Member | |
| Antonius “Tony” Bodewes | |
| Body – 1st Shift – 2 Committee Members | |
| Brooke Benoit | |
| Vicky Holloway | |
| Body – 2nd Shift – 2 Committee Members | |
| Angel Gomez | |
| John Rout | |
| Body – 3rd Shift – 1 Committee Member | |
| Matthew D Wallace | |
| Finish and Repair – All Shifts – 1 Committee Member | |
| J.R. Hudson | |
| Logistics – All Shifts – 2 Committee Members | |
| Jeremy Bowman | |
| Caleb Michalski | |
| Paint – 1st Shift – 1 Committee Member | |
| Jimmy Key | |
| Paint – 2nd Shift – 1 Committee Member | |
| Kelcey Smith | |
| Paint – 3rd Shift – 1 Committee Member | |
| Drew Hall | |
| Maintenance – All Shifts – 1 Committee Member | |
| Steve Cochran | |
| QA – All Shifts – 1 Committee Member | |
| Chris Brown | |
BARGAINING TEAM FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ)
Where can I go get more information or ask another question?
uaw.org/vw/ has additional information including a list of everyone who is running and their candidate statements. You can also email Local42elections@uaw.net
Want to get involved in winning a great contract?
Fill out this short form and someone will be in touch!
You can also attend one of the regular Volunteer Organizing Committee meetings. These are normally held on Wednesday’s at 7:00 am, 3:00 pm, and 11:00 pm in the union hall at 3922 Volunteer Dr, note though that there is no meeting this week, July 24.
WINNING OUR UNION
On April 19, we won a real voice on the job. United in the UAW, we have collective power to improve our jobs at Volkswagen and our quality of life in the Chattanooga area. Here’s how we did it.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ)
Why is this vote so important?
We have a clear and important choice to make in this election. If a majority of us vote “Yes,” Volkswagen will have a legal obligation to bargain with us over pay, benefits and working conditions and secure any agreements we reach, regarding improvements or protecting current benefits, into a legally binding contract. Voting “no” means you support keeping the current system where Volkswagen decides if, when, and how to improve anything and can change things when it is convenient for them as they have done with our PTO and health insurance costs in recent years.
What is collective bargaining and how does it work?
Collective bargaining is how we negotiate our union contract. It’s a process, protected by federal law, that equalizes the power relationship between employees and their employer.
Under collective bargaining, VW workers will elect coworkers to negotiate as equals with VW management. These negotiations result in a proposed contract called a tentative agreement. VW workers then vote to democratically approve the tentative agreement. If approved, it becomes a legally-binding contract that guarantees the terms and conditions of our employment.
Through collective bargaining, UAW autoworkers have set the standard in our industry for strong pay, excellent benefits, pay during shutdowns, job security, protection from unfair treatment, and many other issues on the job.
Without collective bargaining, VW has unilateral power to change our working conditions. For example, VW currently decides unilaterally whether or not we get annual raises, what healthcare coverage is available to us, and can mandate when we use our PTO. Any term and condition of employment is up to VW to decide.
Why are VW workers forming a union now?
We just saw the record raises and historic contracts that 150,000 UAW members won at Ford, GM and Stellantis. Now autoworkers across the South are standing up to win our fair share.
Forming a union with collective bargaining rights is the only way to have the power to negotiate with VW management as equals and reach a legally binding contract. With collective bargaining, workers at VW set our priorities and our agenda—and we elect our coworkers as representatives to negotiate on an equal footing with VW management for improvements such as pay raises, better health care coverage and more paid time off. Without a union contract, VW has unilateral power to change all the terms and conditions of our employment.
Are other non-union autoworkers forming unions right now?
Yes. Across the country — and especially in the South — non-union autoworkers are standing up to form unions. We got the ball rolling at VW. We were the first plant to have 30% of workers sign union cards, and our drive to 50% inspired even more workers to stand up. In Alabama, autoworkers at Mercedes and Hyundai have hit the 30% threshold and are on their way to 50% too. More than 10,000 non-union autoworkers have signed union cards and our numbers keep growing. At Toyota, Honda, BMW and beyond, workers are following our lead and joining together in the UAW to win stronger pay, better benefits and a better life.
What is the process for forming our union?
- VW workers form a diverse organizing committee – also called the Volunteer Organizing Committee (VOC) – reach out to our coworkers and see what issues they want to address in our union.
- A supermajority of all VW workers sign authorization cards indicating we want to form a union and collectively bargain with VW.
- VW workers deliver our authorization cards to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which oversees private sector employee unionization efforts in the U.S.
- VW workers vote in a secret ballot election to form a union. When a majority of us vote to form a union, the NLRB certifies our union!
- VW workers begin negotiating with VW management so we can win a strong and legally binding contract.
How will we choose our bargaining team?
After forming our union, VW workers will democratically elect a bargaining team made up of our coworkers, who will work with experienced UAW staff, to negotiate a contract with VW management.
Why are we forming our union with the UAW?
UAW members at Ford, GM and Stellantis just won historic contracts that raised the bar for autoworkers across America. VW and other non-union car companies suddenly raised our pay because they want to stop us from joining together in the UAW. They know UAW members have the power to win what they deserve. Management in Chattanooga will say unions aren’t a Southern thing. But tell that to UAW members here in Tennessee at GM’s Spring Hill complex. Or to UAW members at GM’s biggest-in-the-U.S. plant at Arlington, Texas. Or to UAW members at Ford’s two plants in Louisville, Kentucky. All of those Southern UAW members just won the strong pay, benefits and rights at work that Volkswagen has been denying us for years.
Is the UAW a corrupt organization?
Since the UAW’s founding in the Depression, when autoworkers flooded into the union to win a better life, it has been a force for economic and social justice. UAW members marched arm in arm with the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. during the Civil Rights Movement and the UAW fought the “free-trade” policies that devastated so many of our hometowns in the 1990s. Starting in the 2010s, 17 UAW leaders betrayed that legacy, were exposed for their crimes and pleaded guilty. In response, UAW members passed a referendum to ensure the union is truly democratic. They voted to give every member the right to directly elect the union’s top officers. In 2023, reformer Shawn Fain was elected president and under his leadership UAW autoworkers just won their strongest contracts in decades.
How do UAW members ensure accountability by the union’s leaders?
Every UAW member has the right to vote for the union’s top officers. Once you become a UAW member, you directly elect the union’s president and executive board. Each UAW local union must audit its books every 6 months, and is audited by the International UAW every 3 years, and there is an outside, independent audit of the International UAW every year.
Every union decision is appealable by members to the Public Review Board, which is composed of individuals independent of UAW, or to the Convention Appeals Committee, which is composed of members chosen at random from among the delegates elected to the previous convention.
Can the union guarantee specific improvements?
VW workers make up our union and will democratically prioritize which improvements to bargain for in contract talks. With a union, VW workers will negotiate as equals with VW management for the changes we want to make. We have far more power to negotiate improvements collectively than we do as individuals.
A contract will legally secure those improvements against unilateral changes by the company. Currently, VW can change policies and benefits whenever and however they want. As the VW Team Member Guidebook says, ”Our policies, procedures, and practices are subject to change at any time, with or without notice.”
With a union, we will vote on our contract. If we don’t like it, we can vote against it and go back to the negotiating table to work out a better agreement.
What improvements have autoworkers bargained for at other companies?
UAW autoworkers at Ford, GM and Stellantis just bargained for and won the highest pay, the best benefits, and the strongest protections in our industry – protections from unsafe working conditions, harassment, favoritism and more.
UAW members at the Big Three don’t pay a dime in premiums or deductibles and have some of the best health care in the country. They also bargained for profit-sharing, so they benefit when the company does well. If Volkswagen workers had the same formula as Ford workers, they would have received a profit-sharing check of $23,000 last year.
Job security is another area where unionized workers have negotiated improvements. UAW members won contractually binding investment commitments from Ford, GM and Stellantis. If they get laid off, they get Supplemental Unemployment Benefits, also known as “SUB pay.” SUB pay is added to state unemployment pay and together they average between 85% and 95% of an employee’s weekly after-tax pay. If UAW members are laid off, they get SUB pay and fully paid health care coverage for two years.
At Volkswagen, we have to use our Paid Time Off (PTO) if we want to get paid during shutdowns. Under the Ford contract, the company can only mandate the use of vacation time for one week of shutdown per year — the rest of the time workers receive SUB pay.
Will I have to pay union dues?
In the UAW, there are no membership dues until workers have gone through the bargaining process and vote democratically to approve a first contract. After that, each individual VW worker can decide whether to pay membership dues or not. Dues are 2.5 hours of straight-time pay per month. Dues are important because they provide the resources to build a strong union with real power in the plant.
What is dues money used for?
Union members democratically decide how union dues are spent.
Do UAW dues go toward presidential candidates?
No. 97 percent of membership dues go to programs that directly build member power in the plant, at the bargaining table and on the picket line if an employer won’t bargain a fair contract. 3 percent of membership dues go toward the UAW Community Action Program (CAP), which supports community and local political action, including advocacy on issues that matter to UAW members. For example, the UAW advocates for fair trade policies that protect our jobs and benefit working people and our families. This dues money cannot be used for federal campaign contributions, such as a presidential race. Members may choose to donate additional money to the UAW Voluntary Community Action Program or “VCAP,” which can be used in federal elections. That additional voluntary contribution is completely separate from dues.
Will VW workers have to go on strike if we form a union?
Our right to strike is one of our most powerful tools as workers. But VW workers decide if and when to strike. Under the UAW Constitution, only when 2/3 of participating workers vote yes in a democratic strike authorization vote can the union call a strike.
My coworkers said they were worried our boss would fire us or target us for publicly supporting the union. What do I say?
Federal law protects our right to organize a union. That doesn’t mean bosses don’t break the law, but it does mean you have protection. In fact, your best protection is the fact that thousands of autoworkers are currently standing up to form unions with the UAW across the country at over a dozen companies. While retaliation would be illegal, our greatest protection is each other. By joining together and building public support for the union, we make it much harder for the boss to single any of us out individually. A union is all about strength in numbers. Plus, unions are nothing new at Volkswagen. VW works successfully with unionized employees in its plants around the world, and we can do that in Chattanooga too.
Will we lose benefits, like the lease car program, if we form a union?
Currently, VW can change or eliminate any benefit of employment – such as the lease program – without our agreement. If we win our union, VW is legally prohibited from changing or eliminating a benefit without our agreement through collective bargaining. Before we have a union, it is also unlawful for VW to threaten to take away a benefit if we choose to unionize. As a union, we can democratically determine what our bargaining priorities are, and we can then vote to ratify the contract we collectively bargain.
Will forming a union result in layoffs or plant closure?
VW has spent billions of dollars to expand production in Chattanooga. VW has unionized workforces around the world and it has partnered effectively with unionized workers at other plants. UAW members at Stellantis just reopened a plant during their contract talks. Before bargaining began in 2023, the company closed an assembly plant in Belvidere, Illinois. Stellantis workers fought it in bargaining and won. Not only did they win a commitment from the company to reopen the plant, they won a new Stellantis battery plant in Belvidere that will bring thousands of new UAW jobs to the community. That’s the power workers have together in the UAW.
Does VW management oppose workers forming a union?
Yes. VW claims to be neutral toward unionization, but VW has a history of opposing workers forming a union at VW Chattanooga. VW attempted to prevent workers from voting in a democratic secret-ballot election in 2019 through legal maneuvering, and successfully delayed the election. VW has employed Littler-Mendelsohn, a New York law firm whose lawyers “excel in union avoidance,” according to their website. Despite VW’s opposition, VW workers all around the world are unionized.
RESOURCES
OUR VOICES AT VOLKSWAGEN
We know what is best for ourselves and our families. With a union and collective bargaining, we now have a stronger voice to prioritize what matters to us here at Volkswagen and in Chattanooga. Read why our co-workers voted “Union Yes.”
“I am helping to form our union at VW because I believe we deserve better safety protocols. I work in the paint department and we have cars that come out of the ovens scorching hot. Our safety is not a priority in these situations. Also, the PTO policies are not fair. We can’t use PTO the way we need it. I’ve never worked at a place that does not allow for excused absence, even with a doctor’s note.”
Shawn Lawler
Paint Shop
“We deserve better time off without using our vacation days. It is not fair that we don’t have flexibility in case of unexpected life situations- we get punished in these situations. That is why I am helping to form my union.”
Cedric Drew
Paint
UAW VOLKSWAGEN VOLUNTEER ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
VW workers from across the plant have joined the UAW Volunteer Organizing Committee (VOC) to get the word out about our union. Did you Stand Up and sign a union card? Now step up and help win our union: JOIN THE VOC
MICHAEL ACCETTURO, Assembly
BASHAAR AL-HUSSIENI, Assembly
DE’JUAN ALFORD, Assembly
JOSE AMARO, Logistics
ROBERT ATKINS, Paint
EUGENE BAKKER, Assembly
OLUDARE BAMGBOSE, Assembly
DANIEL BARNETT, Assembly
ELIZABETH BARNETT, Assembly
JOSHUA BEAN, Assembly
BROOKE BENOIT, Body
LETONJA BERRY, Logistics
TIFFANY BLACKSTOCK, Assembly
TRISTAN BODINE, Assembly
MATTHEW BOISEY, Assembly
KRANTZSY BOURSIQUOT, Assembly
NOUREDDINE BOUSSAFEUR, Assembly
JEREMY BOWMAN, Logistics
DUKE BRANDON, Battery
ALVIN BROMFIELD, Assembly
MICHAEL BROMLEY, Assembly
CHARLES BROWN, Assembly
CHRISTOPHER BROWN, QA
STEVEN BURNHAM, QA
JASON CAMPBELL, Assembly
BOBBY CAMPBELL, Body
ROSLYNNE CAMPER, Body
ROBERT CHORTKOFF, Assembly
STEPHEN COCHRAN, Battery
REGINALD COLE, Logistics
CAMERON CONBOY, Assembly
KEEONA MONIQUE CONYERS, Assembly
ZACHARY COSTELLO, Assembly
VAUGHAN CRABTREE, Assembly
ALAN CROCKER, Assembly
ROBERT CRUMP, Assembly
ZACKERY CURVIN, Assembly
STEVEN DE VRIES, Body
AMANDA DENNISON, Assembly
RICKEY DIAL, Assembly
DAVID DODSON, Assembly
JONES DOUGLASS, Assembly
CEDRIC DREW, Paint
TYRRELL DUBOSE, Assembly
CHRISTOPHER DYER, Assembly
NADINE ELEM, Assembly
TRAVIS ELLIOTT, Assembly
LISA ELLIOTT, Assembly
JOSHUA EPPERSON, Assembly
CHRISTIAN ESCUE, Assembly
BENJAMIN FERGUSON, Assembly
ROBERT FINK, Assembly
BRIAN FLETCHER, Paint
DAVID FREISTAT, Paint
JUSTIN FRIAR, Battery
STEVEN FUGATE, Assembly
SAMUEL GALLARDO, Assembly
SAMI GAMU, Assembly
KERRY GANNAWAY, Body
DAVID GOAT GLEESON, Assembly
JUSTIN GODFREY, Assembly
GENARO GONZALEZ SANCHEZ, Assembly
RAVEN GOODWILL, Assembly
ISAAC GRAHAM, Logistics
TRAVIS GRAY, Assembly
PHIL GRAYS, Assembly
ZACHARY GROSS, Assembly
JARED GULLEDGE, Assembly
ANDREW HALL, Paint
MATTHEW HANCOCK, Assembly
SHERMAN HANEY, Body
CHRISTOPHER HANKINS, Paint
CARY HANSON, Assembly
STEVEN HARDEN, Paint
RYAN HINEMAN, Assembly
DAVIAN HISLOP, Assembly
JOHN HOLLAND, Assembly
VICKY HOLLOWAY, Body
JOSEPH HOLMES, Battery
BILLY HOPKINS, Paint
ALISHA HOUSTON, Assembly
JUSTIN HOWELL, Assembly
JAMES HUDSON, Assembly
BRIAN HUGHEN, Assembly
SETH HUGHES, Assembly
JAMES HUGHES, Paint
MATTHEW HUMPHRIES, Logistics
TROY HUNT, Paint
JOHN HUYCK, Assembly
CRYSTAL JENKINS, Logistics
FRANK JENNINGS, Body
JIMMY JOHNSON, QA
DANIEL KACZMAREK, Paint
JAMES KILGORE, Assembly
KENNETH KILGORE, Battery
DAMIEN KOZIK, Paint
PERRY KRUG, Assembly
GAVIN LANGSTON, Paint
NATHANIEL LARSON, Assembly
SHAUN LAWLER, Paint
WENDAL LAWSON, Assembly
WILLIE LAY, Logistics
ZACHARY LIVINGSTON, Assembly
DEVON LOFTIN, Assembly
SHANNON LOGAN, Body
ANTHONY LOMBARDO, Assembly
DIEUNER LOUISDOR, Assembly
IVAN LOWE, Assembly
JOHN LUMBRA, Assembly
JERRIAL MANGHAM, Assembly
MALIQUE MARSHALL, Assembly
PATRICIA MCFARLAND, Assembly
JOSEPH MCMULLAN, QA
MATTHEW MCWAIN, Assembly
ISAAC MEADOWS, Assembly
JOHNNY MEEKS, Paint
JESUS MERCANTETY, Assembly
JARRET MITCHELL, Assembly
EDWARD MOORE, Paint
CLINTON MORGAN, Assembly
CARLTON NESMITH, Assembly
WILLIAM NICHOLS, Assembly
ZACHARY NORTHCUTT, Assembly
WILLIAM O’MALLEY, Assembly
LARRY OLIVE, Assembly
BRAEDEN OLIVER, Logistics
KIMBERLY ONOFREY, QA
JONATHAN OWENS, Assembly
ASHLEY PARKER, Assembly
CHRISTOPHER PARKIN, Assembly
SHEA PARMENTER, Assembly
JEREMY PATTERSON, Assembly
ANDI PENNER, Assembly
YOLANDA PEOPLES, Assembly
CORY PIPER, Assembly
EBONY POWELL, Body
ED PROK, Assembly
QUINCY QUARLES, Assembly
WILLIAM QUIGG, Assembly
JOSHUA RAY, Assembly
KENNETH REAM, Assembly
TIMOTHY REID, Assembly
CRISTOPHER REYES-LAGOS, Assembly
LANDON ROBINSON, Assembly
JAMES ROBINSON II, Body
ANGEL RODRIGUEZ, Body
JERE ROLLINS, Body
JOHN ROUT, Body
WALTER RUSSELL, Paint
NATHANIAL SALDANA, Assembly
ROBERT SANDERS, Assembly
ROGER SCHEIBE, Assembly
KEONNA SHAW, Body
MATTHEW SHOWALTER, Assembly
NOE SIMMONS, Assembly
BRADY SIMS, Assembly
DANIEL SIVLEY, Assembly
PATRICK SLAUGHTER, Assembly
WILLIAM SMITH, Assembly
KELCEY SMITH, Paint
ANTHONY SNELL, Paint
DOUGLAS SNYDER, Body
ROBERT SODERSTROM, Body
KALEB SOWDER, Assembly
WILLIAM SPRINKLE, Paint
ANDREW STANDIFER, Assembly
ORLANDO STRICKLAND, Assembly
CHRISTOPHER SUITS, Assembly
MATTHEW TALFORD, Assembly
ROBERT TATE, Assembly
JOSHUA TREECE, Assembly
JAMES TUCKER, Assembly
VICTOR VAUGHN, Logistics
DAVID VINES, Logistics
AUSTIN WADE, Assembly
STEVEN WESTMORELAND, Paint
ZARIA WHEELER, Assembly
ORION WHEELER, Logistics
SHORHONDA WHITE, Logistics
JONMONTAE WICKLEY, Assembly
JAMUAN WILLIAMS, Assembly
TIFFANY WINDMON, Assembly
BEAU WINESBURGH, Assembly
JOSHUA WOODWARD, Assembly
MATTHEW WREDE, Assembly
WAYNE WRITESEL, Assembly
YOUSIF YOUSIF, Logistics
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