General Motors-UAW agree on new contract

DETROIT - General Motors Co. and the United Auto Workers reached a tentative agreement on a new four-year contract late Friday.

Details weren't immediately released, but the union said the contract will ensure that laid-off workers will be hired back. The union said the contract also will improve health care benefits and profit-sharing plans.

"When GM was struggling, our members shared in the sacrifice. Now that the company is posting profits again, our members want to share in the success," UAW Vice President Joe Ashton, the chief negotiator with GM, said in a statement. "The wages and benefits we negotiated in this tentative agreement reflect the fact that it was UAW members who helped turn this company around."

The UAW announced the agreement just after 11 p.m. EDT Friday (0300 GMT Saturday), after a little more than eight weeks of bargaining.

The contract covers 48,500 GM workers in the U.S. GM was the first of the Detroit Three to reach an agreement with the UAW. Chrysler Group and Ford Motor Co. are still negotiating.

The UAW says the contract improves health care benefits for workers and protects their retirement benefits. It also says there is an improved profit-sharing plan.

Workers must vote on the plan before it will take effect. Union leaders from around the country have been asked to come to Detroit on Tuesday to learn the details of the contract so they can explain it to their members. GM says a vote is expected in the next week to 10 days.

"We used a creative problem solving approach to reach an agreement that addresses the needs of employees and positions our business for long-term success," Cathy Clegg, GM's vice president of labor relations. "We worked hard for a contract that recognizes the realities of today's marketplace, enabling GM to continue to invest in U.S. manufacturing and provide good jobs to thousands of Americans."

The UAW's contract with GM expired Wednesday, but the union had extended it indefinitely while negotiators continued to talk. In the past, workers might have gone on strike when the deadline passed. But this year, GM and Chrysler workers weren't allowed to strike over wages under the terms of the companies' government bailouts two years ago. These talks are the first since GM and Chrysler needed government aid to make it through bankruptcy protection in 2009.

Talks between GM, Ford and Chrysler determine the wages for 112,500 factory workers at all three companies. They also set the bar for wages at auto parts companies, U.S. factories run by foreign automakers and other manufacturers, which employ hundreds of thousands of people.

[Anotheryahoo]

Why not tie a ceo's wage to a workers somehow? Lets see the ceo gets millions and is paid millions more to screw the workers. Unions pay union bosses millions to screw the CEO. Remove both bosses and let everyone share in the profits equally....hey you think? Those CEO's were going to run GM into the ground,take their selfish millions and be gone. Workers would have no job. This garbage of paying everything to some top ******** has to stop. You never hear the boards of these companys complain about ceo pay because they all are the same class taking care of each other and screwing the worker. We need to get rid of the very greedy class at the top of these companys that get paid thousands of times their worth.

[mecanik-2009]

I really don't know who the automakers are selling their cars to. The last time I was able to purchase a new car was back in the 70's. The price of cars has risen so fast since then I consider it impractical to purchase a new one today. Wages have not kept pace with the price of vehicles and in my opinion they're simply too over priced for what you get.

[tsigili]

Unions will never learn......you can't keep making more for common labor.

[retm-w]

You can't keep charging more for products then common labor can afford.

[taxedmore]

I once had some of my retirement savings in GM stock. It was almost worthless when I sold it. The union didn't care about my retirement, the management didn't care and the board of directors didn't care.
Then more of my hard earned money was used to bail out GM.
From now on, for me, it's Ford or foreign.

[ToolMangler1]

How much would it have been worth, 'today'!!!!!

[Stonewallaj]

The Tax payers are screwed again. This agreement will once again lower the price of the stock held by the US government, making it impossible for us to recover the full amount of the bailout. Also, since the taxpayers are on the hook for UAW pension guarantee's, any changes to the pension plan for UAW should, by law, render the prior agreement void. The union and GM cannot negotiate for more money from the US Treasury without Congressional approval.

[involved_indi]

Of the top 10 cars actually made in the USA, GM only has one... the Chevy Malibu. Toyota has 3, Honda has 2, Chrysler has 2 & Ford has 2. Thats why I don't buy GM products.

[Dgunner]

No one union of any kind is recession prof or bankruptcy proof. They get a bunch of contracts just like before the te recession and in the sight of economic failure it is what it is a piece of paper with a bunch of broken promises and premandated lies . The last time of negotiating failed to prevent anyone from being fired or losing thier job without the bailout money.No corporation or union is recession proof. When the little workers work evryday under a false umbrella they feel better that no umbrella at all. A false sense of security that evryone knows could fold up any day .The unions yell we have a contract and the auto makers yell we had one too if we lose ours you lose yopurs.Plain fact as history has proven this time and time again.In the end the unions have nothing and the auto makers are made out to be thieves . Well we all knew they were thieves before they negotiated terms.

[eteamer]

China has proven their system is a superior economic design. Just move it over there because they are the only ones that can afford to buy the cars anyway.

[involved_indi]

the average wage in China is $200 to $500 per month. What kind of car can you buy with that?

[Excalibrationist]

Well, that takes care of my buying any more Government Motors products!

[Excalibrationist]

I would fully expect the next question out of these two liberal pieholes is: "Why do you hate America?"
(...sigh!)