GM battery joint venture agrees to recognize UAW at Tennessee plant

The United Auto Workers said Wednesday a battery manufacturing joint venture between GM and LG Energy Solution has agreed to recognize the union at a Tennessee plant.

The UAW said a majority of the workers at the Ultium Cells facility signed cards to join the UAW and the company had agreed to recognize their union after workers at an Ohio Ultium plant overwhelmingly voted to join the union in 2022 and won a new contract earlier this year with significant wage hikes. The companies did not immediately comment.

The battery factory employs 1,000 workers.

GM's battery operations were a point of contention in last year's UAW contract negotiations, during which the union held strikes at plants across the Big Three automakers for six weeks.

The automaker eventually agreed to let its Ultium battery plants come under the union's master agreement once a majority of workers decide to unionize.

UAW President Shawn Fain is leading a $40 million nationwide organizing effort, targeting large automakers such as Toyota and Tesla.