Historic Moment in the South: Chattanooga Autoworkers Vote to Strike for a Fair Contract

Chattanooga Central Labor Council pledges full support for Volkswagen workers in their fight for family-sustaining wages and benefits

Chattanooga, TN — The workers have spoken. Just as they bravely voted in 2024 to form a union with the United Auto Workers (UAW), a majority of Volkswagen employees in Chattanooga have once again displayed their unbreakable unity by voting to authorize a strike if Volkswagen doesn’t settle a fair deal. The Chattanooga Area Central Labor Council (CALC) unequivocally stands with our brothers and sisters in this effort and will provide every means available to support them in their struggle for a fair contract.

For nearly two years, Volkswagen employees have been in negotiations to secure their first collective bargaining agreement. Despite the workers’ good faith efforts to bargain, the company has repeatedly delayed, undermined, and refused to address the fundamental core issues of job security, healthcare, and wages that meet the rising cost of living. Volkswagen’s so-called “last, best, and final” offer is only the latest example of their unwillingness to treat the workers responsible for their enormous profits with the respect and dignity they deserve.

While no union takes pleasure in striking, this moment represents far more than one labor dispute. It is a pivotal chapter in Southern labor history. In a region long branded as the “finish line of the race to the bottom,” where corporations have sought cheap labor and pliant laws, Chattanooga’s autoworkers are standing up and saying no more. What happens on these picket lines will echo far beyond the factory gates. It will signal that the South is no longer content to be a low-wage paradise, but a place where working people can build secure, middle-class lives and shape their own future.

Representing nearly 4,000 autoworkers and backed by hundreds of millions in public investment, the Volkswagen contract fight is a test of whether economic development in the South will finally serve the people who make that development possible. The courage of these workers places Chattanooga at the center of a national turning point where Southern labor is reclaiming its rightful place in the story of American democracy and economic justice.

As part of this commitment, CALC has launched the Solidarity Fund, a grassroots initiative providing direct material support to autoworkers on strike. Community members can contribute financially and show up in person at the picket line to demonstrate visible solidarity with those risking their livelihoods for a fairer future.

“This is a historic moment not just for Chattanooga, but for the entire South,” said Geoffrey Meldahl, President of the Chattanooga Area Central Labor Council. “For generations, working people here have been told to keep quiet, take what they’re given, and be grateful. Today, they’re writing a different story of courage, unity, and dignity.”

We invite all Chattanoogans to stand with their fellow working neighbors. Join us on the picket lines, donate to the Solidarity Fund at gofundme.com/f/vw-strike-support, and be part of this historic movement to make the South a home for fair wages, safe jobs, and true community power.

Solidarity,
Chattanooga Area Central Labor Council