United Auto Workers and Sen. Ron Johnson disagree on postal vehicle production dispute in Oshkosh | WUWM 89.7 FM

The controversy over whether to build a new fleet of postal vehicles in Wisconsin or South Carolina took another turn.

On WHBY radio in Appleton on Thursday, Republican Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson questioned the motives of labor leaders who are pressuring Oshkosh Corporation to pull out of South Carolina production preparations and it instead manufactures up to 165,000 postal service delivery vehicles at the company’s plant in Ochkoch.

Johnson said he wonders if the United Auto Workers (UAW) and President Joe Biden are trying to kill the Postal Service contract with the company, “Because they don’t believe they can unionize a factory in South Carolina. They can. But apparently they don’t think they can. So they’d rather kill the contract for Oshkosh Corporation, and that would hurt their union workers in Oshkosh,” Johnson said.

In a subsequent virtual press call with the news media, hosted by the Wisconsin Democratic Party, UAW Oshkosh Local President Bob Lynk responded to Johnson: “Trying to block a contract, it has nothing to do with it. We want Oshkosh to have the job.”

The UAW said it was ready to meet with the senator, who made headlines several days ago for refusing to push Oshkosh Corporation to build the vehicles in Oshkosh, saying, “It’s not like we don’t have enough jobs here in Wisconsin.”

WHBY reported that the senator said he would meet with the UAW this weekend.