Arlington GM Workers Back Proposed Deal

Oct 08, 06:10 AM

Current Headlines: By Bob Cox, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas

Oct. 8--ARLINGTON -- United Auto Workers members at the General Motors truck assembly plant strongly endorsed the union leadership's proposed and radically different four-year contract in voting that concluded late Sunday.

With the vote, the members of UAW Local 276 became at least the 14th local in the U.S. to approve the groundbreaking contract, which is aimed at dramatically reducing GM's labor costs and allowing the biggest U.S. automaker to become more competitive with its prime Japanese rivals.

Production workers at the Arlington plant, who make up the vast majority of the nearly 2,700 UAW members, backed the proposal with 63 percent of the vote. Only 53 percent of skilled tradesmen supported it.

Shop Chairman Dwayne Humphries said that union members realized the gravity of the challenges facing GM.

"They were looking at the long-term future of the plant and the viability of the business," Humphries said.

The agreement contains several provisions the UAW had always considered unacceptable in the past. It turns retiree healthcare obligations over to the union through a GM-funded trust, creates a two-tier wage system and makes specific product promises to plants.

Industry analysts have said that if the pact is approved by a majority of GM's union-represented work force, it will allow the company to drastically cut its estimated $25 an hour labor cost disadvantage when compared to the nonunion plants of foreign-owned automakers.

Humphries said that the union provided members with details of the agreement last Monday, giving them a week to consider it. Five representatives of the union's leadership met with local members in a long informational meeting Saturday afternoon before the vote.

Union members "had a lot of opportunities to ask questions" and study the plan, Humphries said. GM, as part of the contract proposal, has pledged that the Arlington plant would continue to build the current generation of full-size sport utility vehicles through 2012 and would be assigned a new truck or SUV product to produce beginning in 2013.

The ratification deadline for the contract is Wednesday.

Before the Arlington vote, The Detroit News reported that union locals representing more than 39,000 of GM's 73,454 active UAW workers had voted. Of the estimated 27,570 votes counted, more than 16,800 had been cast in favor of the landmark deal.

Workers at two locals, a van plant in Wentzville, Mo., and an engine factory in Romulus, Mich., voted against the deal. A simple majority of all GM's UAW members is required to ratify the contract.

Meanwhile, negotiators with the UAW and Chrysler L.L.C. have made progress on a new labor contract, but a person briefed on the talks said Sunday that much work remains to be done.

"There are a bunch of committees" that have to reach agreement before a deal can be signed, said the person, who requested anonymity because the talks are private.

Chrysler spokeswoman Michele Tinson said Sunday that the two sides were making progress.

The UAW's contracts with Chrysler, Ford Motor Co. and GM were originally set to expire Sept. 14. The UAW selected GM as the lead company and strike target and reached a tentative agreement Sept. 26 after a two-day walkout.

Chrysler and Ford have extended their contracts indefinitely.

The UAW typically reaches an agreement with one automaker and then tries to get the others to match the terms. But industry analysts have said that the GM deal probably won't be an exact fit for Chrysler and Ford and that changes are likely.

The UAW represents about 49,000 hourly workers at Chrysler, the smallest of the domestic automakers. The company also has about 78,000 retirees and surviving spouses represented by the UAW.

Chrysler recently became a private company, which could be a factor in the talks. The private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management bought a majority share of Chrysler in August from DaimlerChrysler.

Chrysler pays its workers an average of $75.86 an hour in wages, pension and healthcare costs, the highest among the Detroit automakers.

This report includes material from wire services.

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Bob Cox, 817-390-7723 rcox@star-telegram.com

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