Tuesday`s Reuters report, which quoted two un nominees with knowledge of the negotiations, said GM executives, CEO Mary Barra and President Mark Reuss, participated in negotiations with Auto United workers` representatives and allegedly went through the final details before announcing an agreement on Wednesday. Barra also met with UAW representatives on 9 October. If approved by the National Council, the proposal will officially become an interim agreement that will be subject to ratification by GM`s temporary workers. The ratification is expected to last one to two weeks. The auto workers` strike is one of two UAW strikes against GM`s facilities. Aramark maintenance workers, with whom GM entered into service contracts, struck five sites in Michigan and Ohio 24 hours before the auto workers` strike. The proposed interim agreement will be reviewed by the National Council of GM, which was convened Thursday morning for a meeting in Detroit. If approved by the Council, the proposed pact will be subject to ratification by GM staff represented by the UAW. General Motors and the UAW reached an interim agreement on a new contract on Wednesday, the 31st day of a national strike.
Negotiations began in July, but the two sides failed to reach an agreement until September, leading to a strike. CNN said workers could strike until the contract is fully ratified or they can return to work sooner. The new four-year contract with GM promises indeterminate jobs for temporary workers and the removal of a $12,000 cap on profit sharing. It also promises a bonus of $11,000 if members ratify the contract, which would compensate more than the financial losses suffered by members during the strike. Interim workers would receive a $4500 bonus at ratification. Sean Crawford, a union worker at Flint Assembly, said that if the details of the proposal fell short of what he had on strike, he was willing to continue walking on the picket lines. At the same time, the G.M agreement allowed three closed plants to be permanently closed, including one in Lordstown, Ohio, eliminating excess production capacity at a time when car sales were slowing. It also puts the company in a more stable position when the economy enters recession.
On October 1, GM`s Silao Assembly in Mexico, which builds the highly profitable Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups, was forced to close due to a shortage of parts, bringing to at least 10,000 workers laid off due to strike action in North America. GM said that Prestrike`s offering included more than 7 billion U.S. investments over the four-year terms of a new agreement, more than 5,400 jobs, higher wages and what the company said would be better benefits. Finally, it was to be the longest strike against GM in decades, which expanded after the announcement of a tentative agreement last week and which its members had begun voting. And the effects of Walkout have been felt across the country – not only by employees and GM, who have halted production at dozens of production and distribution sites, but also by a number of regional suppliers across the country, who depend on the automaker`s power supply. GM pulled out of the road 12 days after the strike and said it would continue to cover health care. The four-year contract, which would have nearly 50,000 workers, indicates the possible end of several months of shutdown that has stopped working in factories and cost the automaker millions of dollars. During the strike, GM said it had agreed not to increase workers` health costs and to provide some of the best health care in the country. UAW has reached a preliminary agreement with General Dynamics Corp., a U.S. defense leader.
Based in Virginia, the company has 2,000 UAW members at production sites in Sterling Heights; Lima, Ohio; And Scranton, Pennsylvania. In Chicago, 25,000 striking teachers and 300,000 classroom children announced an interim agreement with General Motors after weeks of negotiations and one of the longest strikes