UAW Issues Statement On Safety Concerns At Joint-Venture Ford Plant

As Ford Authority reported last week, a new report claims that there are a variety of safety concerns at the under-construction joint-venture Ford plant with South Korean battery manufacturer SK On, known as BlueOvalSK Battery Park. That plant faced its fair share of mold issues in early 2024, but now, some workers are claiming that they’re dealing with a number of additional safety concerns and even injuries while management turns a blind eye – and even terminates employees for raising those concerns. Now, the United Auto Workers (UAW) union has issued a statement regarding this matter.

“The recent reporting on the dangerous conditions at BOSK is infuriating,” said Chuck Browning, UAW Vice President and Director of the Ford Department. “Workers are being put at risk every single day. Every person in this country should be able to go to work and know they’ll make it home safe – not get sick or injured because of corporate greed or negligence. Ford should know better. For over 80 years, Ford workers have had a union and a voice. But now, Ford is running an extreme anti-union campaign at BOSK to keep these workers down. It’s shameful. These workers are demanding what they’ve earned: a real say in their working conditions, especially when it comes to health and safety. Ford, cut the crap. Let them vote.”

Thus far, workers at the joint-venture plant have complained about lingering mold, along with a bat infestation at the site, emergency exit doors that are blocked, chemical exposure, and respiratory issues that have led to some workers winding up in the hospital. Some workers have expressed concerns that they will lose their jobs if they speak up about these issues – and at least one claims that they have already. These same safety concerns are part of the reason why workers at BlueOvalSK filed for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board to join the UAW back in January, but BlueOvalSK has thus far denied these allegations.

Shortly after the report surfaced, a group of 14 Ford investors sent a letter to the company’s board asking the automaker to address issues such as alleged union-busting activity at BlueOvalSK Battery Park, as well as a “lack of engagement” with black communities surrounding the BlueOval City site in Tennessee. BlueOvalSK is a separate entity from Ford Motor Company, but the letter cited the “significant leverage and influence Ford has over this joint venture,” calling on The Blue Oval to “expeditiously address these serious concerns.”