With 70% UAW Support, Mercedes Fires Plant Manager – Volkswagen & UAW Agree to Contract Talks

UAW workers at Mercedes in Vance, Alabama say that they could file for a union election "any day now". (UAW)

Greetings from the Burgh, where we are closely monitoring the action at Mercedes down in Alabama. 

Anne Feeney Memorial Events at Heinz History Center & Mr Smalls Tomorrow

There will be a series of memorial events tomorrow to honor labor folk singer Anne Feeney tomorrow. 

There will be a memorial lunchtime lecture at the Heinz History Center. Then, in the evening, there will be a memorial show at Mr Smalls starting at 6:30. 

More details can be found here. 

With 70% Sign Up, Mercedes Desperately Dismisses Manager

UAW Local 249 Vice President Kirk Garner has confirmed to Payday Report that the UAW has achieved 70% signup at Mercedes in Vance, Alabama. 

“I think, we are gonna win by similar margins to what the UAW did at Volkswagen in Chattanooga,” said Garner referencing the breakthrough 

In a desperate move to stop the UAW’s momentum, Mercedes has dismissed its plant manager. The company has pleaded with workers to give them a second chance and reject the unio0n. 

Already, the company has eliminated a two-tier wage system, given workers an 11% pay raise, and now has fired its plant manager. 

“If that’s what you get for just *talking* union, imagine what you can win when you *join* the union,’ tweeted UAW Communication Director Jonah Furman. “May 13-17, get ready”

Help Pay for Hotels in Alabama

Folks, the UAW election is going to be at Mercedes in two weeks and we need your help to cover it. 

Donate to help us pay for hotel room and food while we are down there. Please, if you can, sign up as one of our 776 recurring donors today. 

UAW and Volkswagen Agree to Negotiate a Contract

Earlier today, Volkswagen and UAW announced in a joint statement that they would begin negotiating a first union contract at their facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee. 

“Volkswagen and union workers around the world have a long history of successfully building vehicles together, and we are jointly committed to a strong and successful future at Volkswagen Chattanooga with the UAW,”, Volkswagen & UAW said in a joint statement today. “ Both sides are now focused on collective bargaining and entering negotiations in the spirit of working together to reach a fair agreement and build world-class automobiles together”. 

Alright folks, that’s all for today. Keep sending tips, story ideas, comments and complaints to [email protected] 

Donate to help us cover hotel & food costs in Alabama. Please, if you can, sign up as one of our 774 recurring donors today. 

Thanks again for all the support. 

Love & Solidarity, 

Melk

About the Author

Mike Elk
Mike Elk is an Emmy-nominated labor reporter and alumni of the Guardian. In addition to filing nearly 2,000 stories from 46 states, Elk traveled with Lula from Sáo Bernando do Campos all the way to the Oval Office in the White House. Credited by the Washington Post for being the first reporter to track the strike wave systematically, Elk started Payday Report using his NLRB settlement from being illegally fired for union organizing in 2015. He lives in his hometown of Pittsburgh and works frequently in Rio de Janeiro, where he attended college at PUC-Rio. He speaks both Portuguese and Pittsburghese fluently. His email is [email protected]