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Anti-UAW VW workers move to form own union

The struggle over unionization at the Volkswagen factory in Chattanooga, TN, continues to get more complicated. There's now a second union fighting to organize at the plant; although this one is staunchly against the actions of the United Auto Workers. At the same time, the UAW is still signing up voluntary members to its recently created Local 42 at the facility and is reportedly near having a majority of the hourly employees on its side.
The new, anti-UAW union campaign is being spearheaded by employee Mike Burton, according to Reuters, and he calls his group the American Council of Employees. He claims to already have 108 signatures in support of his organization. Burton believes that the UAW is harmful to businesses, and his goal is to force another vote to determine a preferred union among workers.
The UAW was initially defeated (712 to 626) when it attempted a union vote at the Tennessee plant in February. However, UAW secretary-treasurer Gary Casteel told Reuters that Local 42 has already signed up over 700 members. If it can reach a majority of the roughly 1,500 employees, the group hopes VW might consider recognizing it as the factory's union.

Leonardo DiCaprio buys rights to VW emissions scandal story

The smoke – proverbial or otherwise – has yet to clear from the Volkswagen diesel emissions scandal. But already they're negotiating over the book and even the movie rights to tell the story of the biggest debacle in the company's post-war history. The news revolves around Jack Ewing (no relation), European economics correspondent for the International New York Times. Ewing is preparing to write a book about the VW scandal. He's already sold the publishing rights to the as-yet untitled project to publishing house WW Norton & Company for a reported six-figure sum. Now movie producers are stepping in to buy the film rights to turn that book into a movie once it's finished. Paramount Pictures and Leonardo DiCaprio's production Appian Way have reportedly already acquired the movie rights. It remains unclear at this point, however, whether DiCaprio might act in the film as well as help produce it. His studio Appian Way produced several films in which Leo has starred in recent years, including The Aviator, Shutter Island, and The Wolf of Wall Street – but has also produced many movies without him. Of course, this isn't the first time DiCaprio has appeared on these pages. A longtime proponent of clean transportation, he was among the first Hollywood celebrities to drive a Prius, inspired the creation of the Fisker Karma, and partnered with Venturi to launch a Formula E electric racing team. It'd take some magic transformation to make DiCaprio look like Martin Winterkorn, or really any of the senior executives at Volkswagen. But whatever his involvement, we think The Wolf of Wolfsburg has a nice ring to it. Then again, so does Rolling Coal. News Source: ReutersImage Credit: Victoria Will/Invision/AP Celebrities Green TV/Movies Volkswagen Videos vw diesel scandal

Recharge Wrap-up: Audi's EV SUV to be built in Brussels, Mercedes-Benz to extend EV range

European Union Industry Commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska is demanding that Volkswagen compensate owners of cars affected by the diesel emissions scandal. She says European customers should receive the same goodwill compensation as American drivers, whom VW is providing with $1,000 worth of recompense. "The issue of compensation goes beyond the difference in the legal setup between the US and the EU and plays a fundamental role in viewing VW as a responsible and trustworthy company," says Bienkowska in a letter to Volkswagen CEO Matthias Mueller. Bienkowska has also requested detailed data about the vehicles and "corrective measures" VW is planning. Read more from Automotive News Europe. Mercedes-Benz will equip its plug-in vehicles with higher-capacity batteries as it expands its electric model range. While the PHEVs it has released so far have electric driving ranges between 14 and 20 miles, better batteries should extend that range starting around model years 2018 or 2019. After releasing a slew of plug-ins by the end of next year, Mercedes-Benz development director Dr. Thomas Weber says, "The next-generation vehicle will overcome the 30-km to 50-km hurdle and then the next generation after that will be 80-100 km when they run as pure electric cars." Read more at Green Car Reports, or from Motoring. Audi will build its pure electric SUV at its plant in Brussels, Belgium. The batteries for the vehicle based on the Audi E-Tron Quattro concept (perhaps to be called the Q6) will also be built at the Brussels plant when production begins in 2018. With this announcement comes news that production of the A1 will shift from Brussels to Martorell, Spain, while Q3 production will move from Spain to Gyor Hungary. Audi says the Brussels facility will "become a key plant for electric mobility at the Volkswagen Group." Read more at Green Car Congress, or in the press release below. Audi production network: ready for electric mobility - Premium manufacturer to produce large series of electric cars in Brussels as of 2018 - New models for Martorell (Spain) and Gyor (Hungary) - Audi CEO Rupert Stadler: "We are increasing our efficiency and bundling key competencies" Audi is preparing its international production network for the mobility of the future. Large series production of the first purely electric driven SUV from Audi will begin at the site in Brussels in 2018. The plant will also produce its own batteries.