Cruse And Associates Uaw Wants Volkswagen Workers To Seek Union Election
The United Auto Workers union has begun passing out cards to employees of the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga to determine whether there is enough support to hold a union representation election. That characterization was confirmed by Volkswagen spokesman Guenther Scherelis at the plant, which has about 2,700 workers employed directly by the German automaker to build the midsize Passat sedan. In recent years, unions generally want at least 75 percent of a workforce to sign cards before a vote is scheduled. The success rate for union referendums drops significantly when lower percentages of workers sign ballot cards, according to statistics of the National Labor Relations Board, which conducts such votes. At the VW plant, older workers are more supportive of the union than younger employees are. Some younger workers fear they could lose some of their current benefits if the union negotiates a contract with Volkswagen. One of those benefits is a popular vehicle leasing plan through which workers can get a new Volkswagen or Audi vehicle every six months and finance it via payroll deductions.
Sales have been so robust that Volkswagen announced March 22 that it would begin hiring an additional 800 workers and open a third shift to meet consumer demand. UAW President Bob King has said the union's goal is to organize at least one of the South's foreign auto plants within the next couple of years, with hopes of expanding to others if the first union drive is successful. The UAW failed in two efforts at organizing Nissan's Smyrna facility in 1989 and 2001. Unionization drives also have failed at other plants, including the Mercedes-Benz factory near Tuscaloosa, Ala. Cruz & Associates is one of the nation's leading labor relations firms, helping businesses manage change in the workplace. We are experienced forward-thinkers who combine hands-on success solving difficult human resources and labor and human resources challenges, with new strategic solutions for keeping the workforce connected to the goals of the organization. Change is the watchword of the future. Old boundaries are gone. Markets are moving faster than ever before. While organizations can't predict the future, they can be ready for whatever it brings by using the best communications and human resources practices to educate, motivate and align their employees to new operating realities. Cruz & Associates has helped hundreds of clients from small businesses to Fortune 100 corporations achieve employee buy-in for new business realities, often in come-from-behind situations. To better serve our clients' needs, we have become more versatile in our capabilities. While we continue to offer the most effective labor relations and campaign management services, we have integrated them with communications strategies, interactive workplace skills, and change management solutions. We too have changed by recruiting top-ranked management professionals and expanding our network of alliance partners.
The system reduces fuel consumption in practical use by up to 0.4 litres/100 km and compared to the current coasting function with the engine running by 0.2 litres/100 km. This new Volkswagen system adds a compact lithium-ion battery to the 12-volt vehicle electrics, with the battery supplying the electric consumer units with power when coasting. A so-called Q-diode regulates the current flow between the lithium-ion and lead-acid batteries. In the middle of the electric power range is the plug-in hybrid concept of the Golf GTE4 and at its top end the 100% battery-powered drive system, such as Volkswagen is offering in the new e-Golf. In this latest upgrade the new e-Golf's electric motor delivers 100 kW of power and 290 Nm of torque, 15 kW and 20 Nm respectively more than before. The e-Golf now accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in just 9.6 seconds and its top speed has gone up by 10 km/h to 150 km/h.
Through improvements to the chemistry of its cells and to their structure, the capacity of the lithium-ion battery system has also been increased from 24.2 to 35.8 kWh. This results in a big increase in range - in the NEDC cycle from 190 km previously to now up to 300 km. Volkswagen is taking on the next big step in the switch to electric power using the all-electric architecture. The first model using this completely new drive system and connectivity architecture will be launched in 2020. The BUDD-e5, I.D.6 and I.D. BUZZ7 concept cars that the brand has already unveiled give a look ahead to the great potential of the new architecture. Friedrich Eichler, Head of Volkswagen Powertrain Development. A second technology with which Volkswagen is shaping the transition to the sustainable mobility of the future is propulsion using compressed natural gas (CNG). A key factor in its low emissions is the optimum conversion of the methane in the exhaust gas. In order to bring the catalytic converter quickly up to operating temperature and keep it there, Volkswagen has developed a lambda split process.
