The United Auto Workers is accusing foreign automakers Honda, Hyundai and Volkswagen of labor violations at U.S. facilities where the union is seeking to organize amid a push to expand its membership following its strike against Detroit's Big Three.
The union said in a press release that workers at a Honda plant in Indiana, a Hyundai plant in Alabama, and a Volkswagen plant in Tennessee have filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board against management at their respective employers for "illegally union-busting."
"These companies are breaking the law in an attempt to get autoworkers to sit down and shut up instead of fighting for their fair share," UAW President Shawn Fain said in a statement. "But these workers are showing management that they won’t be intimidated out of their right to speak up and organize for a better life. From Honda to Hyundai to Volkswagen and beyond, we’ve got their back. The auto industry’s record profits should mean record contracts for these workers, too."
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The UAW said Honda employees seeking to organize the company's Indiana Auto Plant in Greensburg report "being targeted and surveilled by management for pro-union activity" at the shop, where the labor organization says hundreds of workers have signed union cards.
Honda denied the claims in a statement, saying, "Honda encourages our associates to engage and get information on this issue. We have not and would not interfere with our associates’ right to engage in activity supporting or opposing the UAW."
According to the UAW, management at Hyundai's Alabama plant in Montgomery "unlawfully confiscated, destroyed, and prohibited pro-union materials in non-work areas during non-work times."
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The union quoted one worker who alleged a manager told her to stop handing out union leaflets in the parking lot of the facility, and another accused a group leader of throwing away union leaflets the worker had on a table in a break room.
"Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama team members may choose to join a union or not as is their legal right, and this has been true since our plant opened in 2005," Hyundai said in reaction to the claims. "The union’s characterization of events in its press statement do not present an accurate picture, and we look forward to having a fair opportunity to present the facts through our participation in the legal process."
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The UAW made similar accusations against Volkswagen, saying management at the company's Tennessee plant in Chattanooga destroyed pro-union materials that were in a break room and security guards stopped a group from handing out union fliers to fellow employees as they drove into the facility.
Volkswagen did not immediately respond to FOX Business' request for comment.
