Mercedes-Benz Workers Resoundingly Reject UAW Representation
Mercedes-Benz Workers Resoundingly Reject UAW Representation
Will the union's next steps be to get a Cemex bargaining order and force thousands into a union they voted against?
By Peter List, Editor | May 17, 2024
In a stunning blow to the United Auto Workers (UAW) and its “Southern Strategy,” Mercedes-Benz workers in Alabama appear to have voted against having the UAW represent them.
On Friday afternoon, after several days of approximately 5,200 eligible Mercedes-Benz workers casting their ballots in a secret-ballot election conducted by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the unofficial vote count stood at 2045 votes for unionization to 2642 against unionization.
Although the union appears to have lost the majority of workers’ votes, the UAW can still end up representing Mercedes-Benz workers by arguing for a Cemex bargaining order.
Under the NLRB’s new Cemex standard, the NLRB can order Mercedes-Benz to bargain with the UAW—despite a majority of workers voting against union representation—if the NLRB finds that Mercedes-Benz violated the law.
As the UAW has filed numerous unfair labor practices against Mercedes in the runup to the election, the UAW can now try to use those charges to obtain a “Cemex bargaining order,” despite the majority of Mercedes’ employees rejecting the UAW.
If, in fact, the UAW does try to unionize the workers at Mercedes-Benz—despite the union’s loss—and the NLRB agrees, it could result in a pyrrhic victory.
While the UAW may end up unionizing Mercedes’ workers against the wishes of the majority, it could also signal to the rest of the non-union auto workers throughout the country that the UAW does not respect the democratic wishes of the majority.
That, in the long run, may be worse for the UAW than losing the election at Mercedes-Benz.
* This post will be updated with the final election results.