To call the April 19 vote by Volkswagen AG workers in Tennessee to unionize historic may be a bit of an understatement. Not only was it the first foreign-owned auto plant in the South to organize, the vote was a mind-blowing 2,628-985, or 73% in favor. The win by the United Auto Workers came after decades of losses as plant after plant opened across the South. On today’s show, Dr. Stephen Silvia explains how foreign automotive companies whose workers had strong unions in their home countries followed an American playbook to stifle organizing efforts in the United States. Silvia is a professor in the School of International Service at American University and author of The UAW’s Southern Gamble: Organizing Workers at Foreign-Owned Vehicle Plants. He talked with Dan Golodner on the Tales from the Reuther Library podcast. On this week’s Labor History in Two: OSHA goes into effect.

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