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Details of UAW/GM deal reveal minimum wage raise, 6.4K jobs created or retained [w/poll]

John Neff — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 17:45:00 EST

Filed under: Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, GM, Earnings/Financials, UAW/Unions

Details about the tentative deal struck between General Motors and the United Auto Workers union last Friday are being released, and it would appear the union didn't do too bad for itself. Under the new agreement, General Motors has reportedly agreed to retain or create 6,400 union jobs as part of a $2.5 billion investment in future products and the plants that build them. Those product and plant investments include the following:

Reopening GM's Spring Hill, TN plant to build two new mid-sized vehicles
A new compact vehicle to be built at a plant to be determined
A new transmission program at the company's Warren, MI powertrain plant
A new engine program at the company's Romulus, MI powertrain plant
A new casting operation at a plant in Saginaw, MI
An additional production shift at the company's Wentzville, MO assembly plant

Automotive News reports that most of the above investments were originally slated for GM's Mexico operations but will now remain in the U.S. and contribute to the retention or creation of those 6,400 jobs.

Of course, in order to keep and create jobs, others must retire, and so the new accord between GM and the UAW will offer a $10,000 buyout to eligible employees who retire over the next two years and a whopping $65,000 buyout for skilled trades workers who retire between November 1 and March 31, 2012. GM has also agreed to make adjustments to the controversial two-tier wage structure established by the last agreement, raising the minimum wage for entry-level workers from $14/hour to $15.78/hour, as well as improving their health insurance and offering tuition assistance.

Current workers would also appear to make out well, with a record signing bonus of $5,000 if the contract gets ratified, as well lump sum payments of $1,000 in 2012, 2013 and 2014 in lieu of cost-of-living adjustments. Workers will also get a minimum profit-sharing payment in early 2012 of $3,500 based on GM's profits through June 2011, as well as an annual award of $250 if the company meets certain quality goals. All-in, current workers stand to pocket an extra $12K during the course of this new contract. How do you think this new deal rates? Take the poll and tell us why in Comments.

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Details of UAW/GM deal reveal minimum wage raise, 6.4K jobs created or retained [w/poll] originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 20 Sep 2011 17:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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UAW-GM "white book" contract released on web

John Neff — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 14:03:00 EST

Filed under: GM, UAW/Unions

It turns out the 24-page document we showed you last week was not the full UAW-GM contract the two parties negotiated after an historic 40-hour strike, but rather a highlights booklet to make the nuts and bolts of the deal easier for the union's rank and file to digest. The real contract, called the "white book" by union members, has also now hit the web. We found it hosted at Factoryrat.com, all 82 pages of legalese. Some mainstream outlets found the "white book" too and began sifting through its jargon to determine if anything in the official contract conflicted with what the highlights booklet contained. It turns out that what was initially reported by insiders as firm commitments to allocate the production of particular vehicles at certain plants, thus guaranteeing job security through the four-year life of the contract, are actually worded as "opportunities" instead of allocations. That has some worried their job security isn't as iron clad as they believed it would be last week.

Here's a link to a Detroit Free Press article that analyzes the "white book" in more detail because, well, it's Monday and our ADHD attention spans don't permit for in-depth contract analysis.

[Source: Factoryrat.com]

UAW-GM "white book" contract released on web originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 01 Oct 2007 14:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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UAW-GM contract details revealed, local leaders vote unanimously to approve

John Neff — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 15:29:00 EST

Filed under: GM, UAW/Unions

UPDATE: According to Automotive News, the deal also stipulates GM agrees to new-vehicle programs at 16 U.S. plants.

This morning local UAW leaders that represent plants from around the country unanimously voted to approve the contract offered by General Motors that came at the end of a 40-hour strike by union workers this week. Official details of the contract have been revealed, and we now know that GM's contribution to the Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association (VEBA) will be $29.9 billion, plus another $5.4 billion in what The Detroit News calls "pre-VEBA costs". That's significantly less than the upwards of $50 billion we heard was being offered, but UAW president Ron Gettelfinger insists it should last the union some 80 years.

While the contract was unanimously approved this morning by UAW local leaders, it's the 73,000 union rank and file that still need to vote on the contract. That vote is expected to come by October 10th, and despite a $3,000 signing bonus for those who vote to approve the contract, there are some union members who argue that their leadership has betrayed them. A small but vocal group specifically disagrees with the VEBA and the fact that GM is now off the hook for health care costs. There are many who also dislike the new two-tier wage system that starts off thousands of new hires at a much lower $18/hour rate of between $14 and $16.23/hour. Despite protestations, however, we expect the majority of the UAW's GM workers to fall in line and vote this thing through.

Check out official details of the UAW-GM contract after the jump.

[Source: The Detroit News, Automotive News - sub. req'd]

Continue reading UAW-GM contract details revealed, local leaders vote unanimously to approve

UAW-GM contract details revealed, local leaders vote unanimously to approve originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 28 Sep 2007 15:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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