Union suffers big loss at Tennessee VW plant

The United Auto Workers union suffered a crushing defeat Friday, falling short in an election in which it seemed to have a clear path to organizing workers at Volkswagen AG's plant in Chattanooga, Tenn.

With a vote of 712-626, workers rejected the union, which had the cooperation of Volkswagen management and the aid of Germany's powerful IG Metall union, according to the Wall Street Journal.

"If the union can't win [in Chattanooga], it can't win anywhere," said Steve Silvia, a economics and trade professor at American University who has studied labor unions.

Read more from the Wall Street Journal.