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April 30, 2019

Tennessee Governor Leads Anti-Union "Captive Audience" Meeting at VW Plant
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In Tennessee, Republican Governor Bill Lee attended a captive audience
meeting of workers at a Volkswagen factory in Chattanooga Monday, urging
them to vote against joining a union in an election scheduled for May.
Local media was not told about the governor's visit to the plant, and
reporters were barred from the meeting, but a recording obtained by the
news source Labor Notes reveals the governor firmly sided with VW
management against unionization.

Gov. Bill Lee: "Every workplace has challenges, and there are things in
your workplace that you wish were different. My experience is that when
I have a direct relationship with you, the worker, and you're working
for me, that's when the environment works the best. I do believe."

Governor Lee's comments drew both applause and boos from Volkswagen
employees. May's election could see more than 1,700 Chattanooga plant
hourly workers join the United Auto Workers, after a similar election
drive in 2014 failed by a slim margin.


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