UAW challenges Mercedes-Benz union vote, asks NLRB for new election

DETROIT
–
The
United
Auto
Workers
union
is
challenging
the
results
of
last
week’s
organizing
vote
of


Mercedes-Benz
workers
in
Alabama,
in
which

workers
voted
against
union
representation,
and
is
asking
federal
officials
to
order
a
new
election.

Among
a
dozen
or
so
claims,
the
Detroit
union
alleges
that
the
German
automaker
fired
four
pro-union
workers,
forced
workers
to
attend
anti-union
meetings,
and
interfered
with
workers’
ability
to
advocate
for
the
union.

Union
organizing
failed
at
the
Alabama
plant
with
56%
of
the
vote,
or
2,642
workers,
casting
ballots
against
the
UAW,
according
to
the
NLRB,
which
oversaw
the
election.
More
than
90%
of
the
5,075
eligible
Mercedes-Benz
workers
voted
in
the
election.

“All
these
workers
ever
wanted
was
a
fair
shot
at
having
a
voice
on
the
job
and
a
say
in
their
working
conditions,”
the
UAW
said
in
a
statement.
“And
that’s
what
we’re
asking
for
here.
Let’s
get
a
vote
at
Mercedes
in
Alabama
where
the
company
isn’t
allowed
to
fire
people,
isn’t
allowed
to
intimidate
people,
and
isn’t
allowed
to
break
the
law
and
their
own
corporate
code,
and
let
the
workers
decide.”

The
National
Labor
Relations
Board
confirmed
Friday
afternoon
that
its
Atlanta-based
office
received
the
UAW’s
objections
to
the
election.
Friday
was
the
last
day
the
union
could
file
objections
and
challenge
the
election.

Mercedes-Benz
in
a
statement
Friday
said
company
officials
“worked
with
the
NLRB
to
adhere
to
its
guidelines
and
we
will
continue
to
do
so”
through
the
objection
process.
The
automaker
said
it
“sincerely
hoped
the
UAW
would
respect
our
Team
Members’
decision.”

The
NLRB
said
its
regional
director
will
review
the
UAW’s
allegations
of
an
unfair
election.
If
she
finds
that
the
objections
raise
substantial
and
material
issues
of
fact
that
could
be
best
resolved
by
a
hearing,
she
will
order
a
hearing.
If
after
the
hearing,
she
finds
that
the
employer’s
conduct
affected
the
election,
she
can
order
a
new
election.

The
agency
also
reconfirmed
that
it
is
processing
and
investigating
unfair
labor
practice
charges
filed
by
the
UAW
against
automakers,
including
six
unfair
labor
practice
charges
against
Mercedes-Benz
since
March.

After
the
results
were
announced,
UAW
President

Shawn
Fain
accused
the
company
of
conducting
an
anti-union
campaign,
including
“egregious
illegal
behavior,”
but
he
declined
to
discuss
the
union’s
potential
plans
to
object
to
the
results.

Fain
said
on
May
17
that
the
union
would
continue
to
move
forward
with
its
charges
against
Mercedes-Benz,
which
allege
that
Mercedes-Benz
has
“disciplined
employees
for
discussing
unionization
at
work,
prohibited
distribution
of
union
materials
and
paraphernalia,
surveilled
employees,
discharged
union
supporters,
forced
employees
to
attend
captive
audience
meetings,
and
made
statements
suggesting
that
union
activity
is
futile,”
the
NLRB
previously
said.

The
Alabama
results
were
a
blow
to
the
UAW’s
organizing
efforts
a
month
after
it
won
an

organizing
drive
of
roughly
4,330
Volkswagen
plant
workers
in
Tennessee.

The
Mercedes-Benz
vote
was
expected
to
be
more
challenging
for
the
union
than
the
vote
at
the
Volkswagen
plant
in
Tennessee,
where
the
union
had
already
established
a
presence
after
two
failed
organizing
drives
in
the
past
decade
and
where
it
faced
less
opposition
from
the
automaker.