German auto giant fights American workers while enjoying US protection

Germanyʼs post-war success story depends heavily on US backing - with its low-cost defense spending and export-driven economy‚ the country needs American protection to keep global trade routes open

In Alabama a strange situation is unfolding: Mercedes-Benz (which enjoys US market access) blocks its workers from forming unions. The companyʼs anti-union actions include holding forced meetings and firing pro-union staff; this comes as quite a shock given Germanyʼs worker-friendly reputation back home

The South became a safe-haven for foreign carmakers who want cheap labor costs. Hereʼs what happened when UAW tried to organize:

• Republican governors called unions “socialist“
• State leaders worked with German companies
• Companies used anti-worker tactics
• Local politicians made threats about plant closures

The contrast between German and US labor rights is mind-boggling - while German workers enjoy strong union protection Volkswagen‚ BMW‚ and Mercedes picked right-to-work states to avoid dealing with organized labor in America. Its quite ironic that these companies (which rebuilt after WW2 with US help) now team up with anti-democratic forces to keep Southern workers down

Cross-Atlantic worker solidarity shows promise though. German unions helped UAW win at Volkswagenʼs Chattanooga plant last fall - the biggest labor victory in decades down South. The UAW didnt stop there: they filed cases in German courts and sent teams to Deutschland pushing for change

Jake Sullivan (US security advisor) already talked to German officials about this issue. With US defense still protecting German interests its time for Berlin to step up - they could start by making their companies treat American workers better. After all if US workers dont see benefits from global trade why should they support it