“I just wanted to encourage you to take your future in your hands,” Dabrowski told the crowd through a translator.

In a statement to The Detroit News after the union gathering, Dabrowski said he went to Chattanooga as a “passionate unionist who knows that the organized voice of the workforce creates better companies. My visit to Chattanooga in this crucial week leading up to the UAW vote is aimed at ensuring the integrity of the election process. It is essential that the election takes place in a fair and impartial atmosphere. We are here to ensure that the workforce can cast their votes without intimidation. There must be no pressure from external groups such as anti-union organizations.

"Management has also committed itself to neutrality, and our task is to convince ourselves of this. We are determined to intervene immediately should any irregularities occur," he said. "This election must be a genuine, free and fair election by our colleagues — that is our goal. Our presence sends a clear message: every vote counts and should be cast in an environment of safety and respect."

Volkswagen has publicly remained neutral on the effort to unionize its only U.S. plant. In a statement, the company said: “We respect our employees’ right to decide who represents them in the workplace. We fully support the NLRB’s secret ballot election process in Chattanooga so that every team member has a chance to vote in privacy on this important decision.

"We are working hard to make sure all employees know when, where, and how to cast their ballot so their voices are heard. We have been very clear with our employees that no one will lose their job by voting for or against the union. No one will know how an employee votes unless they share it themselves.”

Over several days before voting started Wednesday, The News asked more than a dozen employees outside of the plant how they planned to vote. Most said they were voting yes, while a few were undecided. One expressed concerns.

Deonte Easton, 25, a three-month employee at the plant, isn't planning to vote. He worked at a unionized Coca-Cola plant before and still lost his job even with the union protection.

“I just don't feel like unions are really there for employees,” he said after getting off the second shift at the Chattanooga plant.

Inside the plant, Easton said: “It seems like either everybody's yes or everybody just doesn't care. I haven't really heard of any no's, really.”

Regardless of the vote's outcome, Easton said he wants to see change inside his workplace, particularly how VW handles employee medical issues and the assessment of points that can lead to discipline.

...continued

©2024 www.detroitnews.com. Visit at detroitnews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.