GM Strike - Summary

It’s been 37 years since the last nationwide walkout against General Motors (GM). The United Auto Workers and General Motors Corp. tentatively agreed Wednesday to a contract that ends a two-day strike and puts responsibility for retirees' health care into the union's hands. Union members were told to begin reporting to work Wednesday. UAW officials said they hoped to begin talks with Ford and Chrysler even before GM workers vote on ratifying the pact.
GM and the UAW confirmed that the deal creates a GM-funded, UAW-run trust to administer retiree health care. The two sides gave no other details, but two people briefed on the contract told The Associated Press that it also would give workers bonuses and lump-sum payments and would pay some newly hired workers at lower rates. The union would then invest the money and take over the health care responsibility for about 340,000 GM hourly retirees and spouses.
Wages would stay the same for the length of the four-year deal, but workers would be given a bonus of $3,000 once the contract is ratified and then bonuses of 3 percent, 4 percent and 3 percent of their annual pay each year for the last three years of the contract, said one person briefed on the contract details.
The people requested anonymity because the details of the contract haven't been released publicly, including whatever concessions GM may have made over job security, which was the reason the UAW gave for walking off the job.
The deal means UAW workers will head back to their jobs at around 80 GM facilities across the nation. Some were to return as early as Wednesday afternoon; shift times varied by plant and time zone. The union went on strike at 11 a.m. Monday when talks broke down, ending GM's production and causing layoffs and shutdowns at parts factories. GM said in a statement that the deal will make it significantly more competitive and provides "the basis for maintaining and strengthening its core manufacturing base in the United States."
Under the tentative agreement, GM would hire most of the temporary autoworkers now at the company at full company wages and benefits, one person said. That person said the company has approximately 6,000 temporary workers. Temporary workers who have worked for the company for less than 90 days would be hired at a lower wage, the person said. The pact also includes a lower wage structure for newly hired workers in certain non-manufacturing jobs such as sanitation workers, one person said, adding that in order to make way for the new hires, GM would offer early retirement and buyout packages of $35,000 to workers now in the positions.
GM made no specific commitments to build cars and trucks at U.S. factories, but generally agreed that with the reduced costs from the new contract, investment in the plants would make good business sense, the person said. Gettelfinger wouldn't release any details of job security agreements, including promises for future production at certain factories.
The deal also includes language that mitigates the impact of the jobs bank, in which the company pays laid-off workers most of their salary and benefits, said the person, who did not know the specifics.
Negotiations between GM and the UAW officially began in July. The UAW's original deadline to reach an agreement with GM was Sept. 14, but the union decided to extend that contract on an hour-by-hour basis and keep talking. Talks broke down Sunday night and the union set a strike deadline for Monday. When a deal wasn't reached by then, workers walked off their jobs.

IN SUMMARY:

UAW got:

• An independent retiree health care trust that will be funded with enough money from GM to remain solvent for 80 years



• Undisclosed job guarantees that we expect includes a promise of investment in particular U.S. plants in preparation for production of new models



• GM will hire up to 5,000 temporary workers as full-time employees



• Signing bonuses of an undisclosed amount for all UAW members who sign the contract



• Wage increases of 3% in first year, 4% in second and 3% in third

GM got:

• $50 billion in health care liability off its back after a large one-time payout into independent retiree health care trust



• Two-tier wage structure, as those 5,000 new hires who were previously temp will be brought in at their current wage of $18/hour, rather than the $28/hour current full-timers earn



• Undisclosed revisions in the Jobs Bank program that continues to pay laid-off employees



• Reduction in labor cost to produce vehicles, though might not be realized right away