UAW Will Focus on Honda’s U.S. Plants
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Fresh from a defeat at Nissan Motor Co.’s manufacturing plant in Tennessee, the United Auto Workers said Thursday that it will turn its attention to the U.S. factories of Nissan’s Japanese rival Honda Motor Co.
The union has failed to organize any U.S. auto plant that is wholly owned by a foreign company. On Wednesday, workers at Nissan Motor Manufacturing Inc. rejected the union’s fourth organizing bid in 12 years by a 2-to-1 margin.
The UAW last attempted to organize workers at Honda’s automotive and motorcycle factories in Ohio in the 1980s, and the Teamsters failed to win support there in a 1999 campaign.
But with foreign-owned “transplant” or “implant” brands gaining market share while domestic car makers are losing ground, the UAW has no option but to continue pressing Asian and German companies.
“They can’t afford not to unionize the companies that are growing and competing successfully against the companies whose plant workers are union,” said Michael Flynn, director of the University of Michigan’s Office for the Study of Automotive Transportation. “But they might want to do a close study of why they failed again at Nissan before they go after Honda.”
A company is required to hold a union certification election if organizers can obtain the signatures of 30% of eligible workers. But UAW organizers--recognizing the need for a victory--said they will press for an election at Honda only if they can get at least 65% of the 9,000 hourly workers to sign.
Honda’s Ohio operations consist of auto plants in Marysville and East Liberty, where Accord, Civic and Acura models are built, as well as a motorcycle factory in Marysville and an engine plant in Anna.
The company has fended off unionization attempts by offering competitive wages and benefits and by encouraging direct communication between line workers and managers. But union organizers say their campaign will center on issues such as worker participation in workplace dispute resolution and Honda’s use of temporary workers who are paid about half what permanent factory employees earn.
