US auto workers at VW plant reject bid to unionize

The United Auto Workers union has suffered a fresh defeat at a Volkswagen plant in Tennessee, with workers narrowly voting down a move to organize the factory for a second time.

The UAW has never managed to fully organize a US plant owned by a foreign manufacturer and a win at the German carmaker's Chattanooga facility would have been a significant victory.

But the 1,700-strong workforce at the factory rejected the move by a margin of 833-776 in a ballot that concluded Friday.

The organising effort was attacked by state Republicans and hampered by an ongoing federal corruption probe, with a former vice president of the auto union soon to be sentenced after pleading guilty to misappropriating funds.

"Pending certification of the results by the National Labor Relations Board and a legal review of the election, Volkswagen will respect the decision of the majority," said the carmaker's Chattanooga plant chief Frank Fischer.

"We look forward to continuing our close cooperation with elected officials and business leaders in Tennessee." UAW organizing director Tracy Romero said the company had engineered a defeat in the vote through "fear and misinformation."