Deal To End Strike At BP Refinery In Whiting

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Workers and management at BP have reached a tentative agreement that would end a months-long strike at the refinery in Whiting, Ind.

The United Steel Workers employees must still ratify the contract, and officials expect a vote to occur in the next few days.

"The parties have reached a tentative agreement and are in the process of finalizing the settlement package," BP said in a statement. "We are pleased to have a tentative agreement in place at Whiting and will work towards getting our colleagues back to work as soon as possible."

Workers at refineries across the country walked off the job in February.

While a national agreement had been reached earlier, local issues at Whiting prolonged the walkout there. The main local issue that was resolved was the union's rights to bargain over issues of workers condition at the Whiting, Ind. plant.

A return to work agreement is still pending.

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