WARREN, Ohio : Workers at a General Motors-LG Energy battery cell manufacturing plant in Ohio will decide next month whether to unionize.
The National Labor Relations Board said on 7th and 8th December that workers at Ultium Cells LLC in Warren, Ohio will vote on 7th and 8th December after the United Auto Workers UAW petitioned to represent about 900 workers.
The vote was a critical test of the ability of the UAW to organize workers in the growing electric vehicle EV supply chain, and came after most employees signed cards authorizing the union to represent them.
UAW President Ray Curry said that by refusing to recognize their majority-will, Ultium, a joint venture between General Motors and LG Energy Solution, has decided to ignore democracy and delay the recognition process.
The Ohio plant, the first of four planned Ultium U.S. battery factories, began production of batteries in August.
In a trip to South Korea in May, U.S. President Joe Biden expressed support for workers who want to unionize JV battery plants. Automakers in Detroit have battery plants in the works with Korean partners.
GM and LG Energy are building a $2.6 billion battery cell plant in Michigan that will open in 2024 and a $2.3 billion Tennessee plant in 2023, as well as considering an Indiana site for a fourth plant in the U.S.
The U.S. Energy Department said in July that it intends to loan Ultium $2.5 billion to help finance new lithium-ion battery cell manufacturing facilities, including the Ohio plant.