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VW Union Chief Won't Give Up Fight For U.S. Plant

Bernd Osterloh, who is also a member of VW's supervisory board, told the German daily Suddeutsche Zeitung in an interview published Wednesday that U.S. labor law experts will check whether undue pressure was put on employees to reject the UAW.

BERLIN (AP) -- Volkswagen's top workers' representative says he won't give up the fight for unionization at the German automaker's plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Employees there voted 712-626 last week against joining the United Auto Workers union after state Republicans warned that it could hurt the local economy.

Bernd Osterloh, who is also a member of VW's supervisory board, told the German daily Suddeutsche Zeitung in an interview published Wednesday that U.S. labor law experts will check whether undue pressure was put on employees to reject the UAW.

Osterloh says "all options will be examined" to introduce a "works council" at the only major VW plant worldwide without formal worker representation.

He told the paper that the failure to achieve this might prevent Volkswagen from building future plants in the U.S. South.

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