APNewsBreak: UAW says new Volkswagen policy to open door to union representation in Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The United Auto Workers says an upcoming policy change by Volkswagen would clear the way for it to become the first union to bargain on behalf of employees at a foreign automaker in the South.

In a letter to members of Local 42 in Chattanooga obtained by The Associated Press Monday, union leaders cite "mutually agreed-upon commitments" outlined in a document signed by the German automaker and the union last spring.

Those included that the union would drop a National Labor Relations Board challenge of a February union vote at the plant and that the UAW would cooperate with the company in efforts to win the production of a new SUV in Chattanooga.

In return, according to the letter, "Volkswagen committed in the document that it would recognize the UAW."