Volkswagen workers vote on union in Tennessee — a major test for organized labor
CBSN
The United Auto Workers is hoping the third time proves the charm in Chattanooga, Tennessee, as the labor group seeks to make inroads in Southern states, where employers and elected officials have long resisted unionization.
As the final ballots are cast Friday by 4,300 Volkswagen workers deciding on whether to join the UAW, expectations are running high among labor advocates that the union will prevail after two failed attempts.
"A lot is riding on what is taking place now and what will be decided tonight," Harley Shaiken, a professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley, told CBS MoneyWatch. "This is a pivotal movement for the workers in Chattanooga, but much more broadly for workers in the South and for organized labor more generally."
