Volkswagen?s top labor official, Bernd Osterloh, reiterated that the company?s continued growth in the U.S. depended on the unionization of the U.S. plant. He went on to state that co-determination is an integral part of the company?s strategy going forward and that if there were regions that are more amenable to unionization VW may invest in those areas rather than expanding the company?s presence in the south. U.S. labor law makes it very difficult to create a works council without a unionized workforce that functions in the same capacity as a German works council. Mr. Osterloh?s comments implied that the Tennessee Republican politicians who vocally opposed the union at the Chattanooga plant may have been engaging in an unfair labor practice.
See "VW workers may block southern U.S. deals if no unions: labor cheif", Andreas Cremer, Reuters, February 19, 2014